Forgotten Memories
by RogueShadowX
Summary: This is a story of Laharl and Etna's past when he finds her after being picked on by bullies. Will Laharl be able to help her out? Or will he just end up trying to kill her? Or vice-versa? Better summary inside. Chapter 11 is done!
1. No Rest for the Wicked

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

Disclaimer: I don't own the Disgaea. It would be pretty freaking cool, but I'm much more satisfied playing it. It would take too much effort to manage it and such. Only thing I really wish for is that I'd be in on the loop about their latest stuff. For those who don't know, Nippon Ichi owns it and Atlus is the company that translated it to English. Thank you, sweet beloved companies! You brought this dood much happiness!

Summary: This is a what-if fic that takes place before the events of Disgaea. What if Etna knew Laharl since they were kids but neither one of them remembers anymore? What if he found her in her time of need, helped her, and they became the best of friends? What if they got married and had babies together? O.o How was that for an attention grabber? Well the story is basically something around those lines... Except for the third what-if... that one is just... (thinks about it) Actually... Hm... (pause) Nah... Anyway this summary is pretty much for entertainment purposes and holds no purpose within it whatsoever.

Ages: This will be so you can get a basic idea of what their going through at what age. Hopefully it will help out in this story, making it more understandable.

Laharl - 900 demon years old, making him about 7.2 human years old

Etna - 1057 demon years old, making her about 8.4 human years old

A/N: To those who review, you may be interested to know that I will post responses to the reviews in the same chapter you reviewed as. So say you review for this lovely Chapter 1, I'll type in a response to it at the end of Chapter 1 and update it. Replacing the text for chapters won't show up as a new update on FFN, so check my profile to see if I updated the chapter. If you don't care then I just wasted about 20 seconds of your time. Wanna read something better than all of this? Well let's get on with the story!!

Chapter 1: No Rest for the Wicked

- Laharl -

My eyes slowly open as I wake up to the sound of someone crying.

Cripes. It's only like six in the morning and I start out by listening to sound of someone giving up on life because it's too hard for them.

I continue listening and I realize that I won't be getting some sleep anytime soon.

Much like the sound of a continuous drip, it is soft and doesn't occur much but still bugs the hell out of me. After a little more listening, I realize that the sobs I hear are that of a little girl's.

I blink once and sigh. With a mighty heave, I slide the top of my coffin off and sit up.

"I might as well go and see what all the fuss is about since I'm already up."

The sobs are echoing off the walls of the dark corridors in the castle. Since it's still early, there's still no sun begging to come through the windows and irritate my eyes.

I look around my room and grab my sword lying on the floor, next to my coffin.

My old man prefers to use a lance because he says it is easy to use and it has a great reach. I'm certain that there's more of a reason than just that. I bet it's something really lame like he thinks he looks cool with it. Oh well, what do I care? I use swords and I'll continue using them.

I'll make my own mark in life thank you very much. I'm not going to be someone who grows up into a magnificent and powerful overlord, only to be compared to my old man.

"It's not like they haven't started all ready. All those teachers and trainers who said things like 'Well your dad knew this stuff when he was your age' or 'Not bad. A few hundred years more of training and you'll become as strong as your father.'"

I start to snarl at the mere thought of it.

Stepping out of my coffin, I quickly rush through the corridors as if to leave those annoying thoughts in my head behind. As I follow the sounds of that girl's sobs, I realize that I'm heading deeper and deeper into the castle.

This area is the vassal's work quarters. I walk through this section like I owned the place. Technically I did, but what good is technically? I'm just the son of the king. Nothing more.

I stop where I am, frozen at the thought.

"...Damn it!"

I continue to rush straight on, as I hit my head on the side a few times to get rid of those thoughts.

God this always pisses me off and the source of those thoughts aren't exactly something that I can pummel into oblivion. I mean I can, but I doubt it would be recommend. Even demons need a head that works properly.

By the time I pull out of my own musings, I reach the room where the sobs are coming from.

"About time..." I grumbled.

I blink with realization as I immediately recognize the darkened room. This is the kitchen where the vassals cook all of the food that is served within the castle. The lights are no longer lit so I feel against the wall until I find the candles used to lighten up the place. I reach into my brown shorts, searching for a match.

I can't find one, though I didn't really expect to the first place. Why would I even carry a match? Times like these those human inventions would really come in handy. They somehow mastered the ability to harness electricity and use it to generate light. Light bulbs, I believe they're called.

I smirked at my little reference.

After all, it's not like I'm ignorant of other races, despite how weak they are. It's a future Overlord's job to know how advanced other races have become. Then again I only learn this stuff because I'm forced to. I'd much rather be fighting and on my way to becoming the strongest ruler in all the Netherworld.

Now where in hell can I find some matches? I peer through the darkness as if searching in it would help me find some. My fingers graze the base of the candles and they come across a box. I blink to myself and berate myself for missing this before. I pick up the box, pull out a stick, and light up the match.

- Etna -

My sobs come to halt, as I become aware of the candle that was lighted.

What now? Don't tell me they came back. I don't know how long I've been hiding in this kitchen away from those other demon kids.

I am an orphaned vassal whose only job is help out with the other vassals' jobs. I suppose I should consider myself lucky getting a job in the castle. Otherwise, if I were out there I could be turned into a slave, a punching bag, or even the mistress of some old perverted demon.

I've been called a lot of things while growing up. Orphan. Bastard. Wench. Loser. Too many things that I don't even want to remember. But that's not even half as bad as what they do to me.

They think they can walk all over me because the king took pity on some demon girl lying outside the castle gates, halfway to death. They say that if I even stir up the slightest bit of trouble, the king will kick me out for being so insolent. Or at the worst, he'll have me beaten and tortured for taking advantage of his kindness.

He didn't seem like the type of demon who did that, when he lifted me up and told me everything would be all right, but then again there were a lot of things that weren't the way they seemed to be.

Crap, footsteps are coming closer. No... no more. No more name-calling. No more punching or kicking. No more taunting the little demon girl who has no family or friends. Just leave me alone!

It was too much. I didn't want to go through that again. With that in mind. I did the only sensible thing I could think of. I wiped away the tears streaming down my face and hid inside one of the cabinets.

- Laharl -

Strange... the sobbing all of the suddenly stopped. I walk towards the middle of the kitchen and I take a look around.

Nothing.

I narrowed my eyes.

Either that girl vanished without a trace or my mind is playing tricks on me. Last time I checked, people don't just disappear and my head is pretty much in tact, save for that little beating I gave it while walking through the halls.

Might as well look around. This girl woke up me up and I'll be damned if I just go back to sleep after all of this.

I continue walking till my foot almost slips from beneath me. After catching my balance, I look down to see a little puddle of water. There are also little drops of water around it. If I had to guess, I'd say that these were her tears.

I grin.

Well, well, so much for disappearing without a trace.

I crouch down and take a good look at it.

Jeez, she sure can cry a lot. I wonder what kind of stuff she went through. Not that it matters to me. Why should I care if someone is suffering? That someone interrupted my dreamless sleep.

I narrowed my eyes.

"When I find her I'm going to..."

I blink.

What will I do to this girl, who woke me up? Beat her black and blue? Nah... It's no fun if the girl can't even fight back. Force her to scrub the entire castle? Nah... That's too cliché. Jeez... I'm going to have to think about this one. Well, whatever it is, I'll make sure that she'll pay.

I peer even closer to see that some of the tears smeared toward the cabinets.

I grin.

"Well now, let's see what's behind cabinet number one..."

Leaning forward, I reach out to open the door.

- Etna -

This is it. When this boy finds me, it'll be hell all over again. Why do I have to go through this stuff? Wait... why should I have to go through this? What gives him the right to do this to me?

I can feel my fear being smothered out by anger. This boy must think that he's Overlord of the freaking world. Well he's not!

I narrow my eyes.

If he thinks I'm going to wait here like a good little girl and till he finds me and makes me suffer, he's got another thing coming.

We'll see who gets the last laugh.

I tense up. The door to the cabinet creaks open.

This is my only chance.

Letting myself take in a deep breath, I move into a crouched position. Ready... Set...

The door finally opens.

Go!!

"Prepare for the ass kicking of a life time!!"

I charge forward and knock down the body of the one who opened the door. The boy gave a yelp of surprise as I make contact. I hear a sword clatter, as I push myself off of the floor.

Just as I thought, another boy looking to hurt a defenseless girl.

As I wait for the dizziness to pass by, I realize that the boy isn't moving. Maybe he cracked his head and died when I tackled him down. I narrow my eyes and smirk. Serves him right.

I can now feel joy rising up within me.

"This is it. This is where my whole life turns around. From now on, I will be the one who beats up the boys, not the other way around! I, Etna, will no longer cower before anyone! Let all those who once picked on me, now cower and beg for their lives!"

I look down at the boy's body.

"Hah, hah, hah, hah! Behold everyone! Let this fool be the first of many examples, that I will..."

I pause and feel my blood run cold.

All my joy seemed to fade away to nothing in that very moment. In this candlelight, I am now able to recognize just whom it was that I had tackled down.

"Ohhh shit... I just killed the king's son..."

A/N: Well that was the first chapter. How did you guys like it? I must admit I'm rather disappointed as to how few people still hang around the Disgaea section. Even so regardless of that, I'll do my best to find motivation and update. However, I will say that reviews will most definitely motivate me far faster than anything else will. Well... either those or threats. (sweatdrops) Heh heh...

- Response to the Reviews -

Neo-Cooler:

Cool, my first review! I must admit that I like Laharl and Etna pairings too. I suppose that's obvious though with the story I'm making. I don't even know what motivated me to make it, but that's all in the past. I appreciate the vote of confidence too. Those kinda things are quite important to authors such as myself. Thanks for the comment about the chapter titles. I don't know where you are now but hopefully you're still reading even if you don't review.

the threntner:

More chapters I shall make! So there's nothing to worry about there. Making them fast however... well... (runs off before Etna can attack and pummel)

Kei-kun:

Thanks for the compliment. I'll try to update quicker if I can get through my thick head. Heh heh...

dan heron:

Etna is probably one of my most favorite characters in video gaming RPGs. There are many things such as her attitude and style that can lead off into hundreds of fanfics would people actually make them. The reason she's depressed is because this is when she was still a kid. Though I still need to input the age for everyone... Sheesh... I remember her talking about how the king saved her as a kid so I thought it would work out alright. Hope you enjoy chapter 2!

Alex:

Thank you. Continue I shall!

Angel-wing2:

Yup! Go Laharl and Etna! Dunno what 'imho' is though... Heh... I do like Laharl and Flonne but that works out too well in my eyes. Also, there's so many fics of those two in the Disgaea section. That's one of the reasons I'm making this I think. In order to balance out the others or something. I dunno... Wish me luck on making this into a good one!

Who Knows:

No problem. It may take a while, but I will definitely update. Unless I decide to utterly give up on this fic. But c'mon! What are the chances of that? (thinks about it) Not high I hope...

DragonAlex:

Heh, thanks a lot. I do love Etna and Laharl since in my opinion they make the most interesting couple. I've seen Flonne and Laharl ones too and I like most of them. Their relationship seems too... easy. Like not many problems would arise. I can think of a few good ones but those are fics that others will probably make in the future. I hope you continue reviewing!


	2. No Mercy for the Weak

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

Disclaimer: I don't own Disgaea... In fact, I don't even own the style in which I write this fic. I'd like to thank some other nameless author for this, though it was possibly ripped off from someone else. For some reason I found it easier to write this way since narration-style makes writing fics seem a little less interesting and boring to write with. (blinks) I'm not really sure what I'm talking about right now, so I think it'd be best if I move on with the fic. And now what you've been waiting for since you've bothered to click on the next chapter... the second installment in Forgotten Memories!!

---

Chapter 2: No Mercy for the Weak

- Laharl -

Ugh... My aching head... What the hell happened?

The only thing that I can recall is a flash of red followed by total darkness.

I slowly and painfully open my eyes to see a girl with both her hands on the sides of her face. She keeps on pacing back and forth right by my body. She's mumbling something to herself that I can't quite make out and it's annoying me to no end.

If anyone has something to say, he or she should just say it. There's no use in being timid if you're trying to get a point across. Being small voiced is just another way of saying you're weak. And if there's one thing I hate most in the world, it's being weak.

I strain my ears to try and hear what it is she's saying.

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!! I killed him. I KILLED HIM! What am I going to do? What can I do?! Will the king find out and have me executed? Or tortured for all of eternity?" She stops and breathing rate increases. "Maybe he'll let it slide... After all he's a demon. He understands the way these things go. Right?"

She pauses for a moment before she starts pacing again.

"Oh who am I kidding?! The king would never let something like this happen without any sort of consequence, especially since the queen came along. I doubt she'd let him off the hook if he shrugged off the death of his only son. I suppose it's only typical of humans. I've heard that they're more concerned and sensitive about these kind of matters. Unlike demons, they would most likely keep an unexpected child or at least make sure the child is taken care of if they don't want to keep it."

Her eyes seem to flash with hurt after those words.

I wonder what it is she's thinking of that would make her look so sad. My guess would have to be of her own family. That is if she even has a family to begin with. I know that lots of things happen in the Netherworld that goes unheard of. Many crimes that disgrace the demon name and should be punished for still go on without consequence. One of these days I'll get my hands on those sad excuses for demons and pound them till they die, resurrect them as zombies, and kill them off again. With all that going on, I could only imagine how bad this girl had it.

Her eyes are downcast till she remembers what she's supposed to be focusing on.

"But what the hell does it matter? I'm still screwed regardless. Why the hell did it have to be the prince of all people who was trying to pick a fight with me?!"

What in the name of Baal is she talking about? Who does she think she is trying to tarnish my bad name? I know that I'm known for being ruthless and arrogant, but attacking defenseless girls? That's going way too far.

I shake my head.

Whatever, it's time straighten this crap out.

I let out a small groan, as I slowly struggle to my feet. I'm not quite at one hundred percent but I'd like to see who would be after being tackled by surprise and having had their head smashed against the marble floor.

She's walking away from me, lost in her ranting, unaware that the "dead" prince is actually alive, not to mention on his feet.

With one hand on my head, I do my best to focus on her retreating form. "Hey! Do you mind keeping it down over there?!"

I see her body go rigid and she slowly starts to turn around.

"I swear you're loud enough to wake the undead!" Even though I'm still in pain, I manage to pull off my trademark smirk.

Her red eyes stare unbelievingly at my own eyes, which are filled with indifference. Now that she's fully turned around, I am finally able to see the girl responsible for this headache I have. She wears her red hair up on both sides of her head. The tail that she has sways back and forth from time to time. She's wearing a black choker and her clothes are as skimpy as that of a succubus.

I inwardly shudder at the thought of them.

I absolutely hate females with sexy bodies, whether they are demons, humans, or even angels. I doubt I'd ever see a sexy angel ever wear something like that though. Still, if one of them would exist, my opinion wouldn't change. I can thank the freaking Seraph that mother isn't one of those women. She may be only human but at least she has standards.

However the effect that this girl was supposed to have on me is not felt at all. I wonder why. Perhaps it's because she is not as mature as the rest and the curves that she has are barely developed yet.

I shake my head fiercely, realizing just what exactly I'm contemplating. If there were a psychic around, I could be blackmailed for all of eternity because of those perverted sounding thoughts.

That put aside, I impatiently wait for her to give any sort of response. Seeing as she's rendered speechless from my so-called resurrection, I try once again to talk to her.

"So what's this I hear about killing the prince of the Netherworld? Sounds like a pretty big event."

Anyone listening could hear the sarcasm flow through those words, but I doubt she was aware that I was even talking.

- Etna -

I can't believe it. The prince is still alive!

Relief flows throughout my body as I can feel all the fear I previously had wash away. For a minute I thought I was totally screwed. I mean the king was the only one who even showed the smallest signs of caring for me. If he were to turn on me like the rest I wouldn't know what to do.

Of course this doesn't change the fact that I had attacked and almost killed the prince.

I silently sigh to myself and curse my luck. They say that bad luck is better than no luck at all. If I ever find out who it was who said that, I'll personally rip out their throat with my bare hands. This luck is without a doubt definitely worse than being unlucky.

I can only hope that the punishment for attacking the prince won't be too bad.

"Damn it! Say something!"

I snap back to reality and see the prince's face studying me from less than a foot away.

"WHOA!!"

Out of instinct, I quickly bring up my hand and slap him as hard as I can. This causes him to loose his balance from his crouched position and fall backwards on the floor. I can only gawk at imprint of my hand on his cheek.

His eyes turn from confusion and pain to anger. His left hand reaches up to tend to the bruised mark. He glares at me with such fury that it makes me want to shrink and disappear from his gaze. It makes me feel both guilty and a little afraid.

"What the hell did you do that for?!"

I quickly realize that I have screwed up my only possible chance to make amends with the prince for my attack on him.

The fear that I felt before comes back full force, before I could even enjoy the previous relief. All those what-ifs I was thinking of before once again become a very real possibility.

My feelings of terror are slowly replaced by a grim acceptance of my fate.

What's the use in fighting it anymore? All my efforts wind up in vain when it comes down to it. Nothing I do or say will matter because no matter what, I'll only manage to screw it up in the end.

I guess I know why I was abandoned.

After all, who'd ever want a girl as messed up as me?

With those thoughts I once again begin to cry.

---

A/N: Well jeez, that took a while huh? I honestly don't know what happened with the updating. I just kept playing video games, watching anime, and sleeping during my free time. (blinks) Ok, so maybe I do know what happened... Anyway this chapter had more story to it, which will become the chapter 3. The reason I'm separating it is because it would look kinda weird to have two noticeably different sizes for Chapter 1 and 2.

In any case, stay tuned for the much quicker update of the next piece, "No Hope for the Abused". Also there will definitely be some Laharl/Etna in it, so it'll be something to look forward to.

- Response to the Reviews -

ClawsofDeath:

Thanks. I plan on continuing this for a good while. Should this ever come to an end, then I guess I'll go with a sequel. Hope you continue reviewing.

Goldamon X:

I really appreciate the review. I could always any motivation I get my hands on. If and when you make a Disgaea fic then tell me. I'll be glad to review right back. I may tend to ramble from time to time but the point will be somewhere in there. I hope you'll enjoy the future updates.

Who Knows:

Hey, as long as you do review then I don't mind. I know what you mean about not checking this section often. If you check at least once a week then it should be an accurate time frame. My idea was a friendship/humor thing for this but I think it may evolve to something else. Maybe I'll do Laharl/Flonne after but it looks like they have a good amount of support already.

Kei-kun:

Glad to know you're looking forward to it. You're right in demanding that the updates should be sooner. I'm not saying this fic is so good it should be updated. Rather it's more of a 'author protocol' or something. I dunno. Besides if I don't then it may turn out like all my other fics; in suspended animation. O.O But they weren't really animated to begin with. Either way if there are people waiting then I definitely shouldn't keep them. Expect the updates to be once a week. I'll try to keep it at that.

DragonAlex:

Thanks. I'll be making the updates sooner than... every two weeks... It'll shorter than that. I guarantee that. Unless I run into a writer's block... but what are the chances? (pauses) I hope I didn't just jinx it...


	3. No Hope for the Abused

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

---

Chapter 3: No Hope for the Abused

- Laharl -

What the hell?! First she gets lost in her own thoughts, then she slaps me in the face, and now she's crying?! Again?! Damn, what in the Netherworld is wrong with this girl?

As usual I voice out my thoughts without thinking about the consequences.

"Hey you!" I can only address here like this since she never even managed to tell me her name with the whole tackling me and thinking I was dead. "What the hell is your problem?!"

It's only a matter of time before I manage to regret my words sooner or later.

She looks at me with her tears glistening down her cheeks.

This time it's sooner.

"What's wrong with me?" She asks me with her voice breaking up. "Just look at me!"

I did look at her and despite her choice of clothing, I found nothing wrong about her.

"I'm a parentless bastard! I have no family or friends! Everyone always looks down on me and treats me like dirt. And why wouldn't they?! I'm lower than a vassal!"

I just stood there calmly listening to whatever it was she had to say. She'd feel at least a little better after she got all of that out of her system. That's what mother always does when I'm off complaining. She'll let me rant and rant for hours, until I'm too tired to say anything anymore. So I continue listening to her list of problems which I must admit is pretty bad.

"So go ahead! Hit me! Beat me down just like everyone else does! There's nothing I can do about it, even if I could fight, because you're the prince! Hurt me! I don't care anymore! I'm already dead!"

Annoyed, I make my way up to her all the while looking her in the eye the entire time.

"So that's it, then? You'll just give up?"

I slightly narrow my eyes while her own widen.

"Hm. Well that's too bad. You showed a lot of potential back there. You waited for just the right moment and then hit me with everything you had. That was pretty good for someone who doesn't even know how to throw a punch yet."

I smirk and rub my head.

"It's a shame to see that you'll give up like this. With a bit of training, you might've been able to kick some major ass, but whatever. It's none of my concern."

I glance out of the corner of my eye to see if she takes the bait.

Being weak is bad enough, but she's lost the will to even live and there's nothing's worse than giving up.

Right now, I decide that I'll give this girl the hope she needs.

It's really like what mother said. If you don't have hope then you have nothing.

She looked up, some emotion coming back to her face.

"I... I really could become stronger? Me?"

Her eyes are full of disbelief and I merely scoff at her reaction.

"Of course you can!" I say in my all-knowing voice. "Anyone can with the right person training them!"

"Would you be able to do it? Would you be able to help me get stronger?"

I stand here caught off guard by that question. I really didn't see that one coming but no matter.

My shocked face turns into a grinning one.

"Hah! Of course I can! It's the future Overlord's duty to know everything about anything and that includes knowing how to raise an invincible army!"

Before I realize it, she grabs me by the shoulders and looks intensely at me with her pleading face.

"Please! Please help me get stronger. I need to become stronger! I'll do anything!"

She slowly falls down to the ground with her arms sliding down my chest before they hit the floor.

Her voice is now lowered to slightly above a whisper. "Anything..."

I kneel down and take a good look at her. Being this close, I can see that she has some fading bruises and a cut on her lip. I inwardly growl at this.

I can't believe that there exists actual beings in the Netherworld who would pick on the weak and defenseless. How low could these pathetic excuses for demons go?

Well if that's the way those morons want to play it then it's fine by me. Next time they try to attack her, they'll be in for a rude awakening.

Heh, heh, heh.

"You know what?"

She holds her breath, waiting for me to speak.

"I think I will help you. It might be fun to have someone around who's strong enough to fight against."

The next thing she did caught me completely off guard. She threw her arms around my neck and hugged me closely.

"Thank you! Thank you so much! I swear I'll be the best student you've ever had."

Slightly flustered, I slowly push her away from me.

Her eyes are glistening with tears of joy. Jeez, that's the third time she started to cry in the time I've known her, which has only been for like half an hour or so including the time I spent in my little concussion.

"Yeah, yeah. Technically, you'll be the first student I ever had, but whatever. Now cut the water works so we can head to our first line of business."

I turn around and begin walking so that she won't see my heating cheeks.

That was the first hug I've ever received from a female, aside from my mother. It made me feel... warm.

- Etna -

He's already walking away before I can register what it was he said.

"Uh, what exactly is the first line of business?"

He turns around and looks at me like it should have been obvious.

"Well, you want me to help you get stronger right?"

I merely nod.

"Then the first step is sign you up as my vassal. That way you and I can train without anyone trying to start some idiotic rumors about the two of us."

I speak out a little timidly out of fear of what the answer for my next question will be.

"So... would that make you my master?"

He blinks at me and I can see a frown forming on his face.

"No, I'm not the kind of demon that's in to having mistresses and playing S&M, so don't think I'm like that. In fact, the mere thought of it is enough to make me nauseous. Got it?"

With that said, he begins once again to walk away.

"Oh... okay then."

I know he said he wouldn't treat me like that that but I still feel that I shouldn't get my hopes up. I've trusted before and those times turned out to be some of the worst moments I've ever experienced.

"Hey." He addresses me without even turning around. "I'm serious. You better not be thinking that I'm doing this, just so I can have someone I can abuse 24/7, ok?"

He pauses for a moment and I remain silent.

"Now, listen up because I'm only going to say this once. I pride myself on having more nobility than those sad excuses for demons. I, for one, don't enjoy picking fights with weaklings nor do I use my power to make people's lives a living hell. I'm simply not like that."

He turns around and stares deeply into my eyes. I can't help but feel that he's peering into my soul.

"However, if you're still unconvinced and uncomfortable with this whole deal then feel free to just walk out. I'm not going to stop you. I haveno reason to. Remember that I'm not the one who wants this. This is all up to you."

I avert my eyes and turn them to the ground.

What should I do? Can I really believe him? He did say that I could walk out on this deal if I wanted to. Should I? Can I?

Feeling so much frustration, I cover my face with my hands to cover the expressing forming. It's then I wince at the touch of one of my old bruises.

That's right. If I back out now, then I'm back at square one. They'll continue hurting me and I'll still be as powerless as ever to fight back.

I look up and speak.

"Can I really trust you?"

A small smile forms on his lips.

"I can't answer that one. Only you can decide if you can trust me or not. Only you can decide if I'm being honest or insincere. The only thing I can do is give you my word."

I consider his words very carefully. Is this ok? Will everything turn out for the best?

He talks to me once again in a somewhat softer voice. "So what do you say? Can you take a leap of faith and trust that I'll catch you?"

"Yes."

I blink; slightly surprised by the answer I gave.

I don't know what possessed me to say that. It was as if it were a reflex. Damn I really have to learn to control myself in the future.

Regardless, it's too late now. I've already agreed to a member of the royal family and here in the Netherworld that's just as good as a contract written in your own blood. I just sincerely hope that this won't end with me lying beaten in front of another castle gate.

The prince walks up to me and gives a grin.

"In that case, from this moment on you're my vassal. All we need now is to legalize it. Let's head to the Dark Assembly. They should be in session by now."

Accepting this as my fate, I force a small smile.

"Yes, master."

His smile fades away and he slowly makes his way to me.

I hold my breath, worried that I've done something wrong already.

He stops right in front of me. He slowly bends down so he's less than an inch from of my face. This time I manage not to lash out a slap him.

I feel a blush form on my cheeks whether from embarrassment of that memory or his closeness, I don't know. However, my attention right now is on what he's going to say next.

"I told you. Don't call me master. It doesn't work like that. As long as it's not degrading, you can feel free to call me whatever you want. You can even call me by my first name, something that the other vassals don't address me as."

He blinks.

"Come to think about it, I've never given you my name have I?"

Still transfixed by his closeness, I only manage to shake my head.

"Well then, I'll have to change that."

He takes a step back and for some reason I find myself a little disappointed. He then straightens his back and makes a pose with his arms crossed over his chest.

"My name is Laharl. I am the soon to be Overlord of the Netherworld."

I stare at him, as I repeat his name in my head.

Laharl... It just rolls off the tongue.

"So may I have the name of the girl who has tackled, slapped, and yelled at me before she even knew my name?"

Once again, feeling a little embarrassed; I look down at my feet.

"My name is Etna."

"Alright, Etna it is. So for future reference, what do you plan on calling me?"

Hmm... What should I call him? He doesn't want me to call him master, though I don't think I would like that either. Come on. Something that I'd be comfortable with. Does he even _need _a nickname?

I look at him and say the first thing that comes to mind.

"I think I'll go with Prince."

I search for his approval in his eyes.

"Is that... ok?"

He raises an eyebrow at me.

"Prince, huh? Hmm, sure. It kinda has a ring to it. Well now that that's out of the way, to the Dark Assembly!"

I feel myself smile, which is something I haven't done ever since the king found me. With a new rise of hope for the future, I set out to obediently follow my prince.

I inwardly giggle at the thought.

- Laharl -

Am I doing the right thing? Will the Assembly even let me keep her without a fight?

Regardless of their choice, I've made a promise to her and it's one I intend to keep.

I swear that I won't let her go back to her old life.

I'll continue to give this girl hope and then maybe she'll one day have the confidence to stick up for herself.

Till that day, I _will_ protect her.

---

A/N: Jeez, did that update take forever or what? There are just so many annoying interruptions that keep occurring in my life. For an example there was this one time when these morons from some other school wanted to try to start something with me. They were all like, "We're better than you! You better do what we say!" Seriously... So then _I_ said- (stops self) Actually, nevermind. I don't want to waste anymore of your time like they did to me, or how I did to those waiting for this chapter. By the way, you guys or girls can check my profile for updates on the 'progress' I make. In which, I create a whole chapter in one day. Heh, heh. Keep on reviewing!!

I'm a little disappointed in this chapter and thought it would've been more impressive if it was put together with the second chapter. Do you guys think I should? Let me know because your (points for effect) opinions decide the fate of this fic.

- Response to the Reviews -

ClawsofDeath:

I'm seriously glad you like it. The update is coming soon.

Goldamon:

(grins) Cool. That review just busted the doubt I was starting to have about this story. I appreciate it a lot. Also, I'll do better to update. The reason I ended the chapters so short was because I was wondering if it was too long. Guess there's no questioning that now, huh?

Kei-kun:

I have a "feeling" that things will go a little bit more than smoothly. Of course, it can't be all peaches and plumbs because then where would the story be? I'm glad you liked this chapter. Hope you find the next one to be good too.

neko-chan123:

Thanks. I'll be sure to update on a regular basis. Of course, I don't mean something like once a month... That's too cruel on both the author and those actually waiting for the update. I hope you'll like the next chapter.

cajef:

Thanks a bunch. I really don't hear those kinds of things that much. Hope you enjoy the chapters to come.

lobo-the-lone-wolf:

Jeez... that long period of time shouldn't have existed. Well I mean the time passing is natural but I meant without updating it. Luckily though I was able to realize that there were people waiting for it. Or if not waiting then curious. (hangs head in shame) I hope you enjoy the fourth chapter though. It's because of your review that it's up right now. Feel free to leave any advice and hope to hear from you in the future!


	4. No Weakness for the Prince

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

---

Chapter 4: No Weakness for the Prince

- Laharl -

I continue leading my soon-to-be vassal throughout the castle, which seems to be bigger than I remember it to be. I guess the reason is because Etna keeps deciding to stop and look at everything as we pass it by.

I mean, what's so interesting about this place?

It's now daytime and the vassals have already set to work on illuminating the castles' candles. We have a few windows around the place, but they don't provide enough light to see where you're going.

Hm, those vassals really take their job seriously... not that I'm complaining or anything.

With proper lighting, it's now possible to see the castle for what it really is. Though in all honesty, there's not much to it. It looks just like your average stone made castle filled with paintings, velvet carpets, and of course lava pits.

I turn to look at her and I find that she's staring at a portrait of my old man.

Just now, I feel something that I'm not familiar with. A discomforting emotion that makes me annoyed and a little hurt. It feels like anger mixed with... jealousy?

No, no, that can't be it. Why should I be jealous at all? Let alone of him. Why should I care if he holds her interest? Why should I care if she wants to stare at him all day long? _Why_ in the Netherworld is it that I want for her to be staring at one of my portraits instead?

- Etna -

I continue to gaze upon the king's picture as I reminisce about the time he helped me out.

"Hey Etna, is this your first time walking around the castle or what?"

My words manage to break into the little world she was in and they pull her out. She turns around and looks at me with a slightly confused face.

"Well kinda. You see, I used to hide out in the kitchen and when I wasn't doing that, I'm was stuck doing do chores like cleaning up rooms or doing the laundry. So I never really had the chance to wander the castle halls and appreciate what's there."

I stare at her with a little frown on my face.

"So why do you keep on staring at my old man then?"

Her eyes widen slightly, then her face goes from shocked to solemn.

"You see... he's the one who found me outside of the castle gate. He took me in and watched over me until I got better. After that though, he stopped coming in to check on me. I still didn't get the chance to thank him for what he did."

So that's it then. She was abandoned in front of our gate and he _saved_ her. Well good for him then.

I wanted to continue walking and get the process of making her my vassal over with as soon as I can. I don't like this feeling of uneasiness that she's more interested in someone else than myself.

What the heck? Am I feeling insecure now?

I give a growl and my eyes narrow.

Okay that's it. I _will_ not and _shall_ not be insecure. Insecurity is a major weakness. And in this world where strength is everything, I have no place for weaknesses! With that said, why the hell should I care who she wants to stare at?

I begin walking in a fast pace to the Dark Assembly, not even bothering to look back to see if she's following or not.

"Hey! Wait for me!"

I narrow my eyes and continue my pace.

Like I'm waiting for anyone.

It's not long before I hear her footsteps running up behind me.

So she decided to come along then. Whoop-Dee-Do.

"Uh, Prince... Are you mad about something?"

Hm... What do you think? I'm stuck here watching you, someone who is going to swear complete loyalty to me, obsessing over my old man. Who's already married. To my mother! Well as you can tell, it obviously doesn't bother me so just go ahead and drool over that portrait all you want.

"Did I do something wrong?"

I remain silent and continue walking until she grabs my arm, forcing me to stop.

"C'mon Prince. Tell me what's the matter. Please?"

Enunciating each word, I give her my response.

"Shut. Up."

With that said, I wrench my arm out from her now loosened grip and continue walking on. A hushed silence falls over us, save for the sound of our footsteps echoing through the corridors. I smirk with satisfaction at the fact that I managed to shut her up.

Finally. Now I can think in peace.

That is until I hear her sniffles.

Dreading what this means, I turn around slowly and much to my horror, I find her starting to cry yet again.

"What... what's the matter with you now?"

She looks up at me with her tear-glazed eyes.

It's once again times like these, I wish I were anywhere else except here.

Crying girls is definitely not my forte.

"You... you hate me don't you?"

I shake my head more to myself than to her.

She _would_ still think that even after those promises I made to her.

"For the love of the Seraph... What kind of stupid question is that?"

I roll my eyes and turn my back to her.

"Yeah, I hate you. That's why I'm bothering to sign up as my vassal and train you to become stronger, when it's solely for your benefit. Stronger so you won't have to hide away in fear. Stronger so you'll be strong enough to fight back and win. Stronger so you'll be able to have a better life. Because I hate you."

I sigh and turn back around to look at her.

"Honestly, what are you thinking? Of course, I don't hate you."

She sniffs again before answering me.

"Well, why are ignoring me and telling me to shut up then?"

I remain silent for a bit, while thinking over what she said.

She does have a point there. I did do and say those things.

Jeez, I really need to keep myself in check. I snapped and went a little ballistic on this girl who I promised to help out. Weakness is still a major issue in my book, but I shouldn't take it out on her. Now that that's decided, it's time to clear up our little misunderstanding.

I take a small breath, while contemplating the answer I should give.

Maybe I'll just tell her that I'm angry because I'm so madly in love with her and it breaks my heart to find her so in love with the painting of another man, who just so happens to be my father.

My eyebrows scrunch together, while I actually think about it.

Hm, actually that idea doesn't sound half-bad...

I blink and shake my head.

Nah... she wouldn't buy it anyway.

I give a sigh and look at her, still awaiting my answer. She seems so timid and yet hopeful that I really don't hate her.

Argh! Why does she have to look so fragile and weak? What happened to that girl who tackled me against the kitchen floor? I liked that one better. At least, that girl didn't make me feel guilty or something.

I raise my gaze to meet hers and she's still looking, hoping, and fearing for my answer.

Do my thoughts about her really matter that damn much?!

One look from her says it all. She doesn't want to be left alone again. She's depending on me to help her through this. She truly wants to know if I hate her or not.

.... I guess I'll just tell her the truth then, if it'll put her mind to rest.

- Etna -

I don't realize that I'm holding my breath until he finally speaks.

"Look, it's just... annoying to see you drooling over a portrait. I mean if you're going to become my most trusted vassal, I can't have you dedicated to someone else. I'm suppose to rely on you to help me out and only me."

I continue to listen, hoping that the he really doesn't hate me. I don't want to him to hate me and abandon me just like the others.

I realize something else just now. There's more to me dreading this than him changing his mind about training me. I don't want... to be left alone anymore. I want be able to joke around, to laugh, and to do all those things I see others do with their friends.

Yes... what I really want is a friend.

"I can't have any doubts about your loyalty to me. I don't want to find myself 3,000 years from now in a vital fight against some Overlord wanna be, just so you can stab me in the back. Do you see what I'm saying?"

I never knew the Prince thought that way. Does he really think I would do that? Maybe that's why he acting the way he did. He doesn't know if he can trust me.

"Prince... out of all the demons in the Netherworld, I know the pain of betrayal better than anyone does. I would never betray you. I swear it. Please, you have to believe me."

His eyes slowly close as if he were in deep thought. As a few moments, he opened them and stared straight into mine.

"I do believe it when you say you won't betray me. Still, I need to know. If it should ever come down to between my old man and myself, who will you choose?"

What am I supposed to say? I've sworn to follow Prince for the rest of my days. However, is it really right to just turn my back on the man who saved my life? What am I supposed to do?

"I don't think I can make a choice right now. You know that I want to do this and that I'm more than willing to become your vassal, but you have to understand that I can't make that kind of decision right now! I'm sorry..."

I look down not knowing what to expect. I have once again, quite possibly ruined my chance.

Why not just forget about the king? After all he stopped coming to visit me, possibly regretting saving someone as pathetic as me. So why did I ruin my chance?!

The answer comes to me quicker than anticipated.

Because regardless of what he did after, the fact still remains that he saved me. It's like I told the Prince, I know better when it comes down to betraying someone. It's simply not something I can even imagine myself doing. I only hope that I'll never have to in the future.

But that's getting ahead of myself right now. For all I know, the Prince will call the whole thing off.

I give a meek smile inwardly.

Well, whatever his decision, at least I was able to stand up for my beliefs... Right?

- Laharl -

So, she decides that she can't make a decision huh? Well in that case...

"Fair enough."

She looks at me completely shocked and I can't help but smirk. She obviously was expecting a different answer.

"No doubt you were expecting me to call this off or something right?"

"Ye... yeah..."

Figures she would think that... even though I already told her before that I wasn't going to call this thing off.

"Well look, I'm not all gung-ho about the idea of you deciding that you want to be loyal to two separate people and I do expect you to make a decision about it eventually."

She nods and looks as if she was expecting that.

"Though I must admit that I'm impressed. That was the first time someone defied me openly, who had something to lose. Now that's the girl who I made a promise to. A girl who wouldn't back down from something she believes in. That's the girl who I will train into an unstoppable killing machine!"

I see her confused reaction and I realize I may getting ahead of myself here.

"Fine. I'll train you into a great fighter and we'll see where it goes from there. Is that better?"

She smiles and nods.

"Yeah, Prince. That sounds like a good deal."

"Then if you will..."

I motion with my hand to continue walking, as I turn and proceed to the Dark Assembly.

Though I won't admit to her, I really am proud of what she did. I still plan to make her loyal to me and me alone, but it's really something that someone as timid as she is would do something like that. I guess I am a good influence after all. Heh, heh.

We continue walking through the corridors and I realize with a certain amount of satisfaction that Etna's no longer stopping to stare at anymore portraits.

Up ahead, I see Gargo the Gargoyle guarding the entrance to the area with the Rosen Queen shops, the Netherworld Hospital, and of course the Dark Assembly.

This is just great. He's bound to start some sort of trouble, what with me hiring my first vassal and the vassal being a female demon rather than, oh say a monster. Then again anyone of the vassals would start up anything just to get a laugh or two. Why the hell did my old man have to hire vassals as... _quirky _as them?

I'll have to make a note to do something about that when I become Overlord later on.

We finally come to a stop right in front of Gargo.

Come to think about it, when did he start guarding and doing stuff vassals are actually supposed to do? Eh, who cares?

"Hey Gargo, move it. I'm in a rush."

He looks at me with his gleaming eyes. If I didn't know him as well as I did, I might have been a little intimidated by that.

"And who might you be, hm?"

I groan and put a hand to my face.

"What kind of stupid question is that?! I'm the Prince Laharl, heir to the throne, future Overlord of the entire Netherworld!"

A moment of silence passes by until he decides to speak again.

"Well you certainly sound as annoying as him."

Grr... I'm going to kill him!

He continues talking to me as if he said nothing wrong.

"Tell you what, if you give me some proof that you're the prince then I'll let you go ahead."

Damn it! He knows I'm the Prince. He just wants to annoy me. Well if that's the way he wants to play it, then I have the perfect proof to give him.

"Fine then Gargo. Do you remember the previous vassal we had? Fae the Faerie? How he loved to play pranks on the entire castle? Then he decided to mess with my old man. Do you remember what happened?"

_- Flashback -_

"_Fae!!"_

_The whole castle shook as Krichevskoy stomped out of his room with fire in his eyes. In his hands, he held a black jar that had a piece of paper stuck to it. It read: "Sorry Your Highness, I was feeling a bit peckish. Hope you don't mind if I have a black pretzel or all. Love, Everyone's Favorite Prankster."_

_His wife, a human witch, came out of the room with boredom in her eyes._

"_C'mon darling, do you have to make such a big deal about this?"_

"_Of course I do! If I let something like this slide, then it'll just happen again! And again! Until my whole supply of black pretzels have been taken!"_

_She sighed, knowing that there was no way to stop him. He always did take it personally when his favorite snack was out of stock. How he would rant on and on about how the store had it out for him. Times like these, it's just best to let it be, she could only pray for the poor soul that was foolish enough to take it._

_In the kitchen, Fae the Faerie was enjoying his snacks he had gotten with his five finger discount. The rest of the vassals had gathered to hear his dashing and daring tale of how he took while the king was sleeping._

"_So then as I reaching in the jar to grab it, he started to mumble in his sleep. That's when I heard him say-"_

"_Fae! Where in the Netherworld are you?!"_

_The rest of the vassals quickly scampered as the heard the king roar. They knew better than to get in the way of him when he was in a bad mood. _

_Fae looked around and saw that his captivated audience had unsurprisingly abandoned him. The king's shadow then appeared on the kitchen wall and grew larger as the king approached._

"_No... C'mon it was just a joke! Please King Krichevskoy! NOO!!!"_

_5 minutes later..._

_The king had summoned the Dark Assembly and after the meeting he summoned everyone to the throne room. Among the queen and Laharl were his most trusted and loyal vassals: Goleck the Golem, Manty the Manticore, Dratti the Dragon, Gargo the Gargoyle, and Ghoss the Ghost. They were all there expect for Fae the Faerie, someone they suspected had something to do with this meeting. The chatter among them came to a stop as the king appeared before them._

"_As you all are well aware, there has been a traitor among the vassals. He has committed an act so vile, that I cannot bear to mention what it was."_

_Within the crowd, a young Laharl tugged his mother's sleeve. _

"_Hey, mom, what did Fae do?"_

_She sighed and gave a small smile to her son.._

"_Fae stole some of your father's favorite snacks and now he's going to be severely punished for it."_

_Laharl blinked a few times before responding back._

"_That's what he's making a big deal about?!"_

"_You know how your father is dear..."_

_The king continued talking, not hearing what his family had said. _

"_So as punishment, I have talked to the Dark Assembly and they agreed to my request. I'd like to present to you the new and improved Fae the Prinny!!"_

_A blue, sullen looking prinny stepped from behind the throne for the crowd to see._

"_This is the fate of all those who dare defy me!"_

_With a mighty heave he lifted and hurled Fae over the crowd and onto the cement floor._

_Needless to say, Fae meet the floor with a mighty boom, which reflected off the crazy gleam in the king's eyes._

_Krichevskoy panted heavily for a moment before giving off a mighty, yet crazed laugh. As his laughs echoed among the halls of the throne room, the rest of the vassals sadly shook their head and started walking out. They all walked around Fae's smoldering body, who was rendered KO'ed from the blast._

_Laharl looked back and forth from Fae to his still laughing father._

"_Moron..."_

_With that said Laharl walked away, alongside of his mom, leaving Krichevskoy to continue laughing obliviously that his audience had disbanded. _

Laharl smirked at the memory.

"So you remember the policy from then on right? Those who mess with the royal family shall be brutally charred! Understand?!"

Gargo gulped and backed away from the entrance to allow Laharl and Etna to gain access.

"Erm... No worries, Prince. I completely understand. Besides I don't really feel like being turned into a Prinny and then being blown up. Though if I may inquire, who the demonness accompanying you is?"

Laharl raised his eyebrow at the question.

"If you must know, her name is Etna, my future vassal, as soon as I get it approved by the Dark Assembly."

He looked behind Laharl and then back at him.

"You might have a bit of a problem doing that, Prince."

Laharl snorted at the comment.

"Those old geezers in the Assembly won't be any problem."

"That's not quite what I meant..."

The Prince threw a questioning look at Garo.

"Why's that?"

Gargo looked nervous under his gaze and kept his eyes to the ground.

"Well, you see... she's not really there anymore..."

Lahral's eyes widened and he quickly spun around to discover that Gargo had been right. Etna had disappeared without the slightest trace.

Only one thought came to his mind at this time.

"This is not good..."

---

A/N: I hope you liked this chapter. Sorry for the cliffhanger, but I needed something a little more captivating than, "They walked inside." I was already planning this but I didn't expect it to be part of this chapter. No matter. My apologizes to you if this wasn't a great chapter. Reviews always seem to change my writing ability. For better or worse, I'll let you decide. Review soon!! Motivation tank is almost to the top, because I'm on a role. Help me fill it up!

Stay tuned for 'Chapter 5: No TLC for the Vassal'! As always title is a work in progress... (grin)

- Response to the Reviews -

ClawsofDeath:

Glad I could answer you questions! Though I had no idea what they were. I did try to put some of the plot in this chapter such as some details about Etna's past. I want to keep this as close to the game as I possibly can. Enjoy the next chapter!

Goldramon X:

As always thanks for the review. I'm glad to see that I'm getting "regulars" now. Heh, heh. Makes this fic all the more worth while.

Kei-kun:

Once again I apologize for the late update. I just completely zoned on the updating process. Don't worry though, I'm getting more used to my new 10 page minimum. Let's make two weeks the maximum time for updating, kay? Heh. Thanks for your patronage to this fic! (grin) Definitely helps the updating process.

neko the mata:

Sorry, I've been meaning to give you a response for a while. TLC stands for 'tender loving care'. I'm certain you'll hear used with people like mothers and such. If not then it's fine. I don't think it's a dumb question though. In fact, I'm glad I could help. Learning something new everyday and such, right? I was a little nervous on how people would take the introduction of Fae but it looks like it went smoothly. After all, the genre for this fic is _supposed_ to have some humor in it. Heh.

dan heron:

I'm very happy that you like this fic. I wasn't too sure about the quality of it, but I must be doing something right after all. Keep up the reviewing! The tank of motivation greatly appreciates it. (grins) I really do try to keep this fic in line with the game, so I'm really glad you think it fits.

Nohbody:

Glad you think it's a nice story. Though I really can't take credit for the names of the vassals. I checked with the game to see what they were. I just used their format to create Fae the Faerie. You know, the names closely resembling their species. Hope the next updates manage to catch your interest.

nekochan123:

(lol) No problem. I'll have a new chapter up in a jiffy! Is that even a word? Jiffy? Oh well, you know what I mean. Your enthusiasm definitely helps me update quicker. Hope to hear from you again! Look forward to the next update!

Twitches:

(grin) Most definitely this is a Laharl and Etna pairing! I thought I put that in the summary, but oh well! Maybe I didn't... Who knows? I'm not going to check anytime soon. Thanks for the motivation!

Black-wings91:

Right now I'm trying to develop some sort of relationship between the two. Right now, Etna looks at Laharl for support and a chance for a better life. Laharl's kindness might pay off after all! Laharl sees Etna as a cute girl, though he'll never admit it. At least not yet. (grins) He wants to help her out and win her favor. Silly hormones. But in no way is this a scheme of his. He genuinely wants to protect her. Hope that made some sense! Very glad you like the story. Keep up the reviews and I'll keep up the updating!

LulSheeta:

Well, I don't know about this being a good fic... Maybe superb or godly... (lol) Just kidding! I'm not the type of person to say that kind of stuff. At least, not openly... (grin) I'm glad you like this fic though. It helps build up some confidence in the fic and let's me continue it. Hope you'll like the next chapter!


	5. No TLC for the Vassal

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

---

Chapter 5: No TLC for the Vassal

- Laharl -

"Damn it! Where'd the hell did she go?! I've been looking around for her for hours and I still haven't found her! I should never have let her out of my sight!"

What felt like hours on end was in reality about a good 20 to 30 minutes. Recklessly running and searching around a castle will have that effect on you. Every minute counts, especially when you think that person might be in trouble.

I stop for a moment to catch my breath, resting my hands on my knees. Even a demon prince can only take so much before he runs out energy.

"Ugh, I can't keep on going about this haphazardly. Otherwise, I'll just be wasting more and more time. I have to think about this logically."

First of all, what would be the reason for her disappearance?

"Well it's quite possible that someone managed to take her when I wasn't looking. After all, I was pretty into scaring up Gargo. It's possible that whoever it was waited until I was distracted enough, then they made their move."

I almost smirk at the nerve of them before I realize how serious this situation could actually be. I quickly straighten my face and get back to thinking.

"That means someone could use her for blackmail and if I don't agree to their terms, then the next thing I know I'll be receiving a finger in the mail telling me it's from you know who."

My eyes widen and I shake my head frantically.

"Alright Laharl, calm down. There's no guarantee that it'll happen. Though the real question is would I still comply to their conditions just to keep her safe?"

I know the answer but I refuse to say it aloud. I can never admit to weakness, never accept it. Even so, I know that without a doubt I would agree if it meant keeping her safe. I guess she means that much to me.

"Ugh, forget it! That's just one scenario. There's still others. What if I'm making a huge deal about this when it really isn't?"

I calm myself down and try to relax myself at that possibility.

"I mean, there's still the chance that she left willingly. Though in that case, the question would be why she left. I don't really see any reason that she would leave. I mean, it's not like I said anything that would scare-"

I don't finish my sentence, knowing full well that there was something that could be it. The story I told about my old man turning Fae into a Prinny and making him to explode.

She might think that I would do that to her if she betrays me. After all, she couldn't choose between my old man and myself. She must've been freaked out at the thought of it and ran off. So, wait, that makes this my fault?!

"Damn, that can't be it. It can't."

I shake my head to myself and look up with a dark shade of red in my eyes.

"I know she was kidnapped... I don't care if it was by some wayward vassal out for revenge or some idiotic brats. No matter who it was, they will pay. Dearly."

I tighten my grip on my sword and head out to check out her old spots with one thought in mind.

Just wait Etna, I'll be there soon.

- Etna -

I open my eyes, unaware of my surroundings. I try to sit up before I feel a pulsing headache overtake me.

"Ugh, my head's killing me. What the heck happened?"

I put a hand to my forehead and try to think.

"Okay, last thing I remember was I was going to become the Prince's vassal. Then we were interrupted by some talking stone thing."

What was it?

"Oh yeah! It was that gargoyle vassal. His name was... Gargo. There we go."

I give a little smile and then notice that I'm no longer in the hallways.

"That still doesn't explain how I got here."

I try to look around and find that I am in some sort of dungeon with barred windows.

"There's not a lot of light coming through the windows, so wherever I am must be a good way into the ground. This place is too secure to be a holding cell. That must mean this is one of the dungeons. Great..."

I take a few calming breaths to steady myself.

"I don't know how I got here, but I think its high time I should leave now."

I try to start walking to find that my feet are shackled down. I look down at the chains with a little curiosity.

"How'd I miss those before?"

"Well, well, well the little princess wakes up. It's about time."

I turn my head to find a shadowed figure leaning against the stone wall.

"How do you like this setup I have here? Just give me camera and I'll be able to sell each photo for about 1,000 Hell a piece to some indecent magazine. What do you think?"

He gave a small chuckle and I growl.

"After all you already have the outfit down. Only thing I'm missing is a straddle. Heh, heh."

I flare with anger at his words.

"Shut up! Who the hell are you?!"

He faked a gasp and started to walk towards me.

"I'm surprised you forgot me already, Miss Etna."

As he comes closer, I'm able to recognize him as Sid, an old acquaintance. He's the kind of guy who I'd rather bite my own tongue off than to be forced to stay within a 5-foot radius of.

I watch as his eyes slightly narrow and his voice turns from a taunting one to a more serious tone.

"Then again you seem to be forgetting a lot of things lately. I'll be frank. Madares isn't pleased with your work. Lately, the things you've been taking from the castle have been getting cheaper and cheaper. And what exactly were you doing hanging out with the Prince, hm? Hope you haven't forgotten your deal with us. Your brother's still our captive. We wouldn't want another repeat of the episode with your pet dragon now would we? I doubt your little bro would very much enjoy being tortured to death."

How dare he bring up what happened to Flame! That dragon was my only friend and they killed her! Now he's threatening to the same thing my only family.

He gave off a smirk that made me want to rush up to him and strangle his scrawny little neck till his head fell off. I probably would have were my feet not chained down.

"Dammit, you bastard! Don't you dare touch Arimas! If you do, I'll make you regret the day you ever crossed paths with me! You got it?!"

"Ohh, a pretty big threat from someone who's pretty much immobilized. At least, that's what it looks like from where I'm standing."

He walked around me with his hands folded behind his back.

"He's pretty young you know. I'd hate to see what Madares would have us do to him. He's the only piece of family you have left. It would be a shame."

My eyes narrow.

"Don't forget that the only reason I took this job was to help support Arimas and myself. If you mess with him, then the whole deal's off."

"Not to worry Miss Etna. We won't do anything of the sort. However, we were instructed to rough you up a bit, just to make sure you don't get any thoughts on betraying us. You've been getting a lot bolder lately and Maderas thinks you should be brought down a notch. Personally, I like a girl with a little more flare, but oh well."

He then turns his head to the wooden door and calls out.

"Come on down boys. It's time to do your job."

The door creaks open and I hope I can prepare myself for whatever comes through it.

More bruises, more scares, more pain.

I sniff.

Prince. Wherever you are, please come soon.

- Laharl -

"Okay, fine. So she's not in the kitchen, dinning area, throne room, my room, or any freaking room on this floor!"

I lean against the wall, now more out of breath than before.

"Where else can she be?!"

Unknown to me, Ghoss the Ghost comes through the wall I'm leaning on and hovers right beside me.

"Boo!!"

"Guah!!"

I quickly unsheathe my sword and swing at whatever snuck up next to me. My sword slices into the wall with pieces of the wall crumbling as any sign of what was there.

I look at the wall questioningly wondering what the hell was there.

"Jeez, that was a close one. You almost took of my head there!"

I see Ghoss's form emerge from the wall and then I realize it was him who startled me. I narrow my eyes at him.

"Serves you right for trying to scare me."

I sheath the sword, angry that I'm wasting precious time.

"Trying? I think I succeeded pretty well if you ask me."

He turns around to look at the sliced wall and then back at me, then grins.

With a growl, I put my hand on the handle of my sword, ready to pull it out.

He sees this and his eyes widen. Waving his ghostly hands through the air, he tries to plea with me.

"C'mon, I was just joking with you!"

After another growl and some consideration, I relax my grip around the handle and drop my hand down by my side.

"Whatever. I don't have time for the likes of you."

Before I can start walking though, Ghoss floats right in front of me.

"That's what I've been meaning to talk to you about. I hear you've been cooking up a storm around the castle. Are you looking for someone by any chance?"

He gives a knowing smile that succeeds to piss me off.

"And _what_ exactly would you know about it?"

Ghoss gives a grin and put his hands behind his head.

"I dunno... what do you have that a ghost, such as myself, would have a use for?"

My eyes flare up and I growl.

"Here's a better question! What's the only thing that a ghost, like you, values in death that I can hack off?!"

With those words said, I pull my sword out the sheath once more and point it to Ghoss's lower half.

"Now if you're done screwing around, tell me what I want to know! Or else!!"

Ghoss presses up against the wall, out of complete and understandable fear.

"Okay, okay! The red haired chick you've been hanging out with, she's being held captive in the dungeons! There was also a group of demons there and they didn't look like the kind of demons you'd invite to your mother's house if you know what I mean."

I growl louder with my fangs bared.

"Next time, if you have something that important you better tell me right away!! Otherwise you won't be so lucky!"

I quickly rush off to the dungeons, ignoring the half-frightened to life ghost.

"If those bastards even try to do something to her, they'll feel an wrath of an Overlord!"

Ghoss, seeing that he was out of danger, slid down against the wall.

"Whew! That was close... In that moment though, he reminded me of King Krichevskoy as a kid. Very hot-headed and very dangerous. Hm, he might make a good Overlord after all. Heh, heh, heh..."

With those words, Ghoss faded into the wall, glad to be all in one piece.

- Etna -

"Ugh!!"

I try to keep from making any noises, since I know those sadistic freaks get off on hearing sounds of pain.

My feet are still shackled to the floor and I'm outnumbered 5 to 1. Things aren't looking very good. Right now, I'm at their mercy and I doubt they're going to be feeling merciful anytime soon.

I can't pass out though. If I do then there's no telling what they'll do to my body.

Sid gets off the stone wall and raises his hand as a single for them to stop.

"Poor Etna. I hate to see you suffer like this. You know, I could get you out of this. All you have to do is become my partner once again. Maybe even something more. If you know what I mean. Heh, heh."

I move from my fallen position to a kneeling one. I look up at him and despite my bruised and slightly bloody face, I manage to grin.

"If you think I would willingly go back to working with you then I have two words for you."

Sid raises his eyebrow and crosses his arms against his chest.

"And what words would those be, hm?"

I fill my voice with the commanding and arrogant tone of the Prince. He's such a bad influence on me.

"Drop. Dead."

I then swish up the blood in my mouth and spit it right at his cheek.

It hits like a bull's eye and Sid's face goes from a smirking one to an outraged one. With a growl, he backhands me against the floor.

"Fine then!"

He grabs a mace from one of his lackeys and taps it against his hand. He does this for a bit until he regains his superior look and smirks at me.

"You've had your chance. Now you'll suffer the consequences."

I growl and notice much to my dismay that my feet are still shackled to the floor.

Think Etna, how can you get yourself out of this? There's got to be something you know that could help. Hm, Sid always was big on things like pride. Maybe I can use that to my advantage.

"So you're going to mace a defenseless girl? Who's chained down? How brave of you. Wouldn't you get more satisfaction from beating me in a fight, where I actually had a chance? I thought you had higher standards than that."

He glared a little before smirking yet again.

"Fine then, if you think it'll make any difference. Hurry up and grab a weapon from one of my men, then I can then proceed to paint the floor with you."

I slightly grinned to myself, glad of his insufferable pride.

At least, now I'll have more of a chance.

I look around and find one of his goons holding a spear. When I see it, I'm reminded of the king and how he helped me through the hard times after Flame was killed.

With some determination, I wrench the spear from the idiot's grasp.

"I'm going with the spear."

"Whatever. Makes no difference to me."

He then points to the one I took the spear from.

"You. Unlock her feet so that she won't complain about how unfairly I beat her."

He gives a question glance before shrugging and doing what he's told.

I take a deep sigh and try to calm my nerves. This is the first time I've been in a real fight. And with such stakes on the line, it's only natural to be a little nervous. Especially when the only experience, I've ever had was watching the king practice. I get into the stance I saw the king take before and ready myself.

"Let's go!"

I lunge at Sid, who wasn't expecting such a sudden move. With a mighty heave, I thrust the spear right at his torso.

Sid quickly regains his focus and sidesteps out of the way forcing me to continue charging.

Before I realize what happened, I feel myself out of breath and pain in my ribs. I struggle to breathe in and slowly turn around, leaning against my spear.

Sid chuckles and points his mace at me.

"Not bad, but you won't catch me off guard next time though. Consider that blow I gave to your side as a compliment. The next ones won't be quite as merciful."

Damn, this isn't good. I can't fight like this. I'm out skilled and outmatched. Maybe with some training I could've been able to win.

I'm sorry Prince. Looks like I won't be able to become your vassal. I was really looking forward to it to.

"_So that's it, then? You'll just give up?" _

My eyes widen and the sudden memory of the Prince when we first met.

He said that he would help me a common vassal like me, as if it were one of the most understood laws of the Netherworld.

"My name is Laharl. I am the soon to be Overlord of the Netherworld." 

He was so sure of himself. He had a huge level of confidence that I didn't possess. The kind I wanted; the kind I that needed and still need.

"Now that's the girl who I made a promise to. A girl who wouldn't back down from something she believes in. That's the girl who I will train into an unstoppable killing machine!"

My breathing slows down and I'm filled with realization.

I already have the courage and confidence I need. The Prince saw it, even though I couldn't. I can't back down now.

Too many people believe in me for to just forfeit. Armias is relying on me to support the two of us. King Krichevskoy found me and decided I was worth saving. And the Prince... He chose me to be his vassal. I can't let him down now. I won't.

Remembering a move I saw the king practice, I crouch into position, imitating it the best I can. I believe he called it Impaler.

Well here goes nothing...

"Yeah!"

I jump up high into the air and aim my spear for Sid's head as I come down.

Having only a couple of seconds to react, Sid jumps backwards and looses his footing, trying not to fall down.

This is my chance!

At the last minute, I flip the spear so it's pointing forward and land on my feet. Then I lunge once more and jab the spear at Sid, stabbing it right into his arm.

"AGHHH!!!"

Sid drops his mace and falls to his knees, clutching his arm.

"Yes! I did it!"

Sid looks up at me and glares with hatred.

"You bitch! How dare you do that to my arm! I'll kill you!!"

I smirk at him, kneeling in front of me. I start talking in mocking tone of his voice, just to piss him off even more.

"Really? That sounds like a pretty big threat from someone who can only use one arm. At least, that's what it looks like from where I'm standing."

"Grr... I may be temporarily disabled, but my men aren't. Guys! Make her pay dearly..."

They grin and pull out their weapons, gathering around me in a circle.

Crap. That's right. I'm still outnumbered 5 to 1.

Dammit! I should've just made a break for the door and ran. Now I'm surrounded by spears and swords.

I look around and see that things are pretty much looking hopeless.

Is this the end?

Before they can make a move, the wooden door of the dungeon bursts open and lands on the stone floor, covered in flames. As the fire dies down, I see Laharl standing in the doorway.

I'm ready to exclaim in joy before I notice the Prince's expression. It's a look that's full of anger and hatred. A look that says he's out for blood.

He walks over the flaming door, ignoring the fire and withdraws his sword.

As he slowly walks towards the circle of weapons, I notice that his narrowed eyes are glowing a dark crimson. Truly like a demon. And for some reason that I can't quite explain, I find myself a little scared. Not from the goons surrounding me, but the Prince walking towards us.

He stops his growling, long enough to look up at those surrounding me and gives a threat, so terrible and so unlike the Prince, that it imprints itself in my head.

"By the time I'm done with you bastards, you'll be _begging_ for me to kill you..."

---

A/N: Yes! Another deadline completed! The great part of this is that it's coming more naturally now. I hope you guys liked this chapter. When I originally wrote this, kid Etna seemed too much like teen Etna from the game, so I toned it down a bit. After all, she is supposed to be a timid kind of girl, at least until the Prince starts training her. So I'm trying to ease her personality into the storyline. Hope she didn't seem too different from the previous chapters.

If you guys have any requests, suggestions or something you'd like to see, feel free to post them as reviews. Of course, motivation reviews are more than welcome as well! They are much loved and helped with the progress of this fic!

In case most of you don't know, I'm posting response to the reviews in the chapter that was reviewed. I'll also put this notice in the first chapter at the top. It just seems to work best for me. Sorry if it's inconvenient for the rest of you, but I want to be able to respond even if I haven't updated. If any of you want to know if I made response to the reviews, check my profile. It'll be in the section for this fic. Hmm... I guess that's it! Keep the reviews up guys!

Stay tuned for the next installment of Forgetting Memories, Chapter 6: "No Limit for the Demon"!!

- Response to the Reviews -

Goldramon X:

Wow, you're review just made my week. No one has ever said that about any of my stories. I doubt the quality of my past work would have been good enough, but still. Thanks a lot for the comment! I'll be sure to continue updating!

Bella:

Hey thanks a lot! I try to keep this as accurate as possible. I mean I can't do a 100 percent job since I'm not the creator of Disgaea, but I still try. I, too, believe that Etna and Arimas are related, though I'm not sure if what you meant by Arimas calling Etna his sister was just out of respect or literally. Eh, I don't know. I'll try to make a new chapter soon!

Kei-kun:

Glad you liked the chapter. No doubt you're disappointed in me for my lack of updating. . Things got rather hectic during winter break and now mid-terms are coming up. I know I'm just making excuses though. I'll try to make up for it by putting out a new chapter this weekend.

Black-wings91:

I completely know what you mean with Laharl being the strongest character in your file. Laharl's stats in mine beats anyone elses by quite a bit. Him being equiped with legendary leveled up weapons doesn't help much either. When I was writting the dungeon scene I got completely engulfed in the emotion of it all. I hope it came out the way I intended it to.

Wanda:

Yes! Another new reviewer! Very sorry bout the not writting it soon. It'll be up this weekend if I have anything to say about it. Me, being the author, I think I do have some say in it. I hope you enjoy the next piece!

LuSheeta:

Thanks! It's good to know that you enjoyed it. I hope you'll either equally like the next chapter or like it even better ...Possibly not, but here's hoping!

Dan heron:

Hey! I was kinda wondering where you where! Glad to know that you were still reading and just forgot to review. Nothing like having your readers loose interest in a fic. Though I suspect that some already have looking at the first reviews to the latest. At least I got some new ones too. (grins) I got the Maderas idea from another fic. Not the whole using him like this, but just including him. Now that I think about it he's quite the useful story device. And yes, Arimas is the little boy controlling the zombies. Including the one with the assorted horse weiner. (laughs) Now that was funny... Go Etna! I completely agree that she rocks. Hope you continue reviewing!!


	6. No Limit for the Demon

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

-

Chapter 6: No Limit for the Demon

- Laharl -

I walk slowly towards the group of cowards that had surrounded Etna with my sword swinging in a lazy-like manner. I look at each one of them with seething hatred. They in turn look at me uncertainly, not knowing what to make of the one who busted the dungeon door off its hinges.

What a pathetic excuse for a bunch of demons. It only takes 6 of them to gang up on one little girl? How brave of them...

While I continue making my way toward them, I can smell the scent of blood getting stronger and stronger. I scan the room for the source and see that there's some blood dripping from one of the demon's arms.

Heh, looks like I missed out on some of the party.

I look at the blood falling to the stone floor and I suddenly feel the desire for more of it. I want it dripping off my hands and the taste of it in my mouth. As I look around, imagining their blood splattered on the walls because of what they've done, I notice some real blood on a spear that Etna's carrying.

Guess that would mean that she's the one who injured him. Who'd have thought? Someone as timid as she attacking and drawing blood from someone else. Although, she _was_ the one who attacked me off guard before she even saw my face. Heh, guess there's hope for her after all.

However, by the time I'm done with him, he'll be wishing that was the worst that happened to him.

"Heh, heh, heh."

My chuckling snaps one of the demons out their stupor. He steps forward and points his sword at me.

"Hey brat! Just who the hell do you think you are, huh! No one threatens us like that! Do you have a death wish or something!"

I chuckle briefly before glaring at him with an intense hatred in my eyes.

"I have no need to explain myself to a worm like you. You, who would gain up on a demon girl, who's barely over 1000 years old. Don't think that I'll let you live after doing something like this within my castle!"

His eyes widen and he points his finger incredulously at me. "Your castle! You mean you're King Krichevskoy!"

I snarl at the reference and raise my sword at him. "No, you're wrong. I'm even worse than my father. I, for one, will not hesitate in making sure that your last minutes alive are full of pain and suffering! You will experience terror like never before!"

For some reason, those words I spoke stir up a memory deep within me and I find myself suddenly recalling a night long ago when I was just a kid.

_- Flashback -_

Young Laharl jumped on top of his mother's and father's bed late at night. The queen rubbed her eyes slowly and sat up to stare at her son, whose back was turned to her.

"_Lahar, dear, why are you jumping on our bed so late at night?"_

_King Krichevskoy, too, sat up and grinned at his wife._

"_I think he had a bad dream and wants to stay in our bed for tonight. Isn't the right my son?"_

_The king then put his young son in a headlock and dragged him down, falling back on the bed._

_Laharl struggled and after a few minutes, managed to finally push Krichevskoy's arms off from around his neck. Turning around he glared the best a kid his age could._

"_Yeah right. You wish. I just want mom to read me a bedtime story."_

_The king smiled, slightly amused by his son's interest in stories and tales. Usually demons wanted things like riches and dreamed of things like power, but not his son. Perhaps there was more human blood of his mother's in Laharl than his own demonic blood._

_Krichevskoy smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. _

"_So why can't you just learn how to read? That way you can read all the stories you want, without having to wake us up every night."_

"_No! It wouldn't be the same if mom didn't read it."_

_His mother smiled and pulled Laharl so that he would lie down between herself and the king. "Okay, okay. After this though, you have to go straight to sleep. Understand?_

_Laharl grinned and nodded._

"_So which one do you want to hear about tonight?"_

_The young prince jumped off the bed and ran to the bookshelf and pulled out a wornout book. Running back to his parents, he jumped on the bed and held the book in front of himself._

"_This one!" _

_His mother picked up the book with a smile and looked at the front cover. "Again, Laharl? You really like this book don't you?"_

_Laharl grinned and nodded. "Yeah! It's a great book!"_

_The queen look over the title 'Demon Myths and Legends' and opened the book to where they left off last time. "Let's see... Tonight's story will be about Baal, the Lord of Terror."_

_Lahar's eyes slightly widened. "The Lord of Terror? Who's that? He sounds scary."_

_She smiled and patted him on the head. "Now, now. Let's wait until the story actually begins."_

_He gave a pout before he grinned. "Okay!"_

_Krichevskoy smiled and put his arm around his wife's shoulder. "If you keep this up honey, then he might very well grow up into a kind and fair demon. What wll the neighbors say?"_

_She slightly glared at him and lightly punched him in the arm. "Hah, hah. Now on with the story. Baal was often called the Lord of Terror due to the immense power he had. He ruled his world with an iron fist and even set out to conquer other worlds. To him, words such as mercy or love did not exist. If anyone stood in his way then he would not hesitate to destroy them."_

_Laharl widened his eyes. "Wow, he must be really powerful."_

_His mother gave a small smile and pulled him close. "Just because he had great power does not mean that he was a great ruler. Laharl, when you grow up, you will realize that a truly great Overlord is one who will look out for his subjects. One with kindness and mercy in his heart, while making the proper decisions on when to use it or not to. Okay?"_

_She continued the story all the way up till when Baal was finally sealed. However by then, Laharl was sound asleep with a smile on his face._

_The king pulled the blankets over his wife and son. Turning to his wife, he put his arm around her shoulder. "That truly was a sad story wasn't it dear?"_

"_Yes. I think it would be quite lonely to lead a life of bitterness and hatred."_

"_And you're worried that our boy might go down that path in the future? It's no use fretting about it. We won't be around forever and we won't always be able to tell him what to do. All we can do is guide him and trust our son to follow his heart."_

_She reached out and stroked Laharl's hair. "Yes that's true, but for his sake, I hope he will never have to make that decision in his life. I truly hope not."_

I blink, wondering where the hell that memory came from.

Is that what I'm going to end up like if continue on like this? A Lord of Terror? Someone who would only shame and disappoint my mother?

I'm about to consider just sentencing them to life of labor and servitude, before I look at Etna. Seeing all those cuts and bruises on her is enough to send any thoughts of mercy flying.

She didn't deserve any of those. They will pay dearly...

I shrug off the former feeling, uncaringly and look at the faces of every demon there; mine filled with the arrogance of knowing I'll be the one to kill them.

Grinning sadistically, I speak aloud to the demons.

"So who wants to be the first to die?"

As if those words were the gong to signify the start of the fight, they start charging at me as if their lives depended on it.

And in truth, it did.

With all my strength and thoughts of vengeance, I lift up my double-edged sword up in the air and swing it, slicing down upon the demons rushing at me.

- Etna -

I can only watch in terror as I see the battle unfold before my very eyes. The slash the prince makes slices through a spear that was meant to block it and lodges it in one of the demon's shoulders.

"Ack!" The demon stumbles back only to be smacked in the ribs with the flat side of the prince's sword and is sent flying.

I hear a sickening crunch from the impact, knowing at least a few ribs were broke.

Another demon with a spear charges at Laharl and thrusts it at him. Before I can warn the Prince though, he catches the spear by the tip and impales the charger. He doesn't even notice that his own hand is bleeding. He then lifts the gasping demon while still on the sword and swings it, throwing the guy into the wall.

Blood from the throw splatters in front of me. A small portion lands right in front of my feet, which causes me to take a few steps back.

"Why should I be afraid? This is what I wanted right? To see these bastards get what they deserve."

Then why do I want Laharl to stop this? This isn't like him at all.

I watch as one of the other demons that Sid hired charges at Laharl with the sword held right above him. I soon find out that my fear for Laharl's safety is once again unfounded as he merely grins and swipes his sword horizontally, slicing both of the guy's arms off.

While the guy is on his knees yelling in pain, Laharl lifts his bloody sword up and licks some of the blood off. He then grins and gives off a crazed laugh.

I cringe a little at his behavior.

Why would he do that? Why is he doing this? He could just as easily knock them out instead of dismembering them.

He points his sword at the remaining two goons and Sid with his immobile arm.

"Don't think I haven't forgotten about you guys yet! I plan on hurting you a thousand times worse than what you did to Etna!"

He then looks back at me with anger and a little sadness in his eyes, before turning back to the group.

"You bastards... I'm going to redefine your definition of pain over and over until you loose count!"

Is that why he's doing this? For me?

I honestly don't know what to make of this. No one has ever stood up for me before. Let alone seeking revenge for me.

I feel a warm feeling because of it, yet at the same time I'm still frightened over his behavior.

"Prince..."

I reach my arm out to him.

"That's enough. You don't have to fight anymore. You've made your point."

I take a few steps closer to him.

"Please? Let's just imprison them and go. I want to go back now..."

He looks down at his feet and then back at me.

"I'm sorry, Etna. But whatever punishment my father would decide for them, despite him being quite passionate about the rights of abused demons, such as yourself, it would still pale into comparison to what I think they deserve."

He gives a saddened grin to me.

"Don't you see Etna? I can't forgive them. I can't let them get away with what they did. The only way I would ever put down my sword is..."

He closes his eyes for a few seconds and opens them to reveal a pair of crimson feral eyes.

"Is to make sure that they can never pick up a weapon ever again!"

- Laharl -

With renewed rage, I walk slowly away from Etna and towards the group.

"You bastards have hurt someone dear to me and tortured her in many ways when she has done nothing to deserve it. She is an innocent who cannot fight back and yet you still decide to abuse her! You have no RIGHT!"

Glaring with hatred, I notice that the three remaining demons are side-by-side, the one with the wounded arm in the middle, creating the perfect target.

These bastards will know the pain Etna has felt.

With a deep breath, I focus all of my demon energy into this single attack. I clench my fists so tight that blood starts dripping from my palms. Deeply in concentration, I begin to feel my demonic aura surrounding me.

I then thrust my hands into the air and summon numerous explosive spheres.

With one look of hatred and bloodlust, I snarl at the bastards for what I'm certain will be the last time.

"Bite the dust!"

With a mighty throw, I send all of the spheres right at their little compacted group, which meets them with a grand explosion.

I can hear their screams of agony and I can't help but grin maliciously at it. Let them all feel the pain that Etna felt.

When the dust finally clears, I walk towards the charred and bruised bodies.

"Don't think I'm done with you bastards yet."

I lift my sword up and start slicing ferociously at the already downed body on the left. The only movement he makes is from the force of my sword going across his chest.

"Die!"

I wait for a minute and then move on to the body on the right. With equally as much hatred, I begin slicing at his body until I am able to reach the stone floor located underneath him.

"Die!"

I then step in front of the body in the middle, who save for the wound in his arm and the charred skin, is quite in tact.

I plan on changing that soon enough.

"Die and make amends!"

Before I can swing down however, I feel a pair of arms wrap around me and I feel the press of a body against my back. I stop for a moment in confusion, uncertain of what to make of this sudden contact, until a feel a little wetness on my bare back.

I slowly turn around and see that it was Etna, who has tears in here eyes.

"You can stop, Prince. They're dead now. They're all dead..."

My breathing starts to slow down and I feel my anger fade away. I let my bloodied sword drop to the side of me. Overcome with a sudden wave of dizziness, I feel myself fall forward and be caught by the slender arms of Etna with my head leaning against her chest.

"Looks like I used too much power in that last attack... Heh... I don't know what the hell that attack even was. Too blind with rage to know what was going on."

I look at her teary face and with what little strength I have left, I lift my right hand up and gently wipe away the tears in her eyes.

"It looks like I made you cry again, Etna."

Breathing out, I offer her a faint smile and slink to my knees on the ground while still in her arms.

"I'll have to work on that in the future..."

I can only manage a few more words before I slip into the abyss of unconsciousness.

"I'm sorry..."

And with that I close my eyes and loose myself in the darkness.

- Etna -

"Prince? Prince! Are you okay?"

I quickly wipe away the remnants of my tears and put my fingers to his neck, checking if he's still alive. Feeling a faint and steady pulse, I let out a sigh of relief and slump down to the floor with him.

"Thank god. You're only asleep. You had me worried there."

I take a look around the bloodied dungeon and the remnants of the battle that took place. Everyone, save for Sid, had been beaten and maimed.

As I start to relax, I notice a faint movement from one of the bodies. My eyes widen and I quickly grab hold of the spear near me for defense. I hear some coughing and realize that it's coming from the injured body of Sid.

He slowly rises to his feet in a lot of pain with his teeth clenched.

I gently lay the Prince on the stone floor and get up using the help of my spear. I then speak to Sid, not hiding the distaste in my voice.

"I guess rats really are a pain in the ass to kill after all."

Sid looks up to see Prince lying peacefully next to me and glares.

"Heh, you're the biggest rat here. After all your purpose _is_ to infiltrate the castle and act as our inside man, so to speak. And what exactly did that brat mean when he called you an innocent? Please, you're anything but one!"

"Shut up!"

I point my spear at Sid with anger in my eyes.

He looks back and forth between the Prince and me before he grins.

"You mean he doesn't know?"

He laughs lightly to himself before going into a coughing fit.

"Poor Etna. Looks like you weren't being truthful with the little Prince. He doesn't know that you're nothing more than a spy and a thief, hired by Maderas."

"You bastards! You're the ones who blackmailed me into it!"

I can see Sid's struggling to even stand up straight. I could probably take him out with one more stab and put an end to all of this.

As if he realized what I was thinking, Sid talks to me aloud.

"If you want, you probably could kill me right now. However, as soon as Maderas realizes that you've betrayed us, he'll make sure your little bro will pay for it. I don't think you want that on your conscience."

I snarl at him, not lowering my spear from him.

"Tell you what. I won't tell Maderas about what you did, under one condition."

He looks at his wounded arm and then narrows his eyes at me.

"In three days, we'll meet at the abandoned graveyard just outside the castle premises. You and I will be the only living beings there, aside from Arimas. So that means no help or backup allowed. The winner will gain custody of Armias and gets to decide the fate of the loser. Make no mistake though Etna, I _will _get revenge for what you did to my arm... So, is it a deal?"

I lean against the wall behind me, feeling a little zapped of strength myself.

"Hmph, like I have much of a choice. You got yourself a duel. And make no mistake Sid, I _will _get Arimas back from you."

Sid grins and turns around to head out the gap in the wall, where the door used to be. Before leaving though, he turns around and looks at me.

"Oh and a little piece of advise, my dear Etna."

I look at him questioningly and glare.

"I highly recommend that you enjoy what you have here right now. Because once the Prince finds out what you've been doing, he'll turn his back on you just like everyone else. The King will banish you from the castle and you'll be without a single friend just like you were before."

With a final chuckle, he slowly makes his way out of the dungeon and disappears into the halls.

"Damn him... He always did have to get the last word in."

I use the spear as a crutch, still aching from being beaten just a while ago and slowly walk a few steps to where Laharl is laying down.

I sit down by him and smile at the expression on his face. He almost looks innocent, just laying there.

But he's not...

The proof is written all over the walls of the dungeon.

"You really did do all of that for me, didn't you Prince?"

I lie down next to him and put my arms around his body.

"You're the only one who ever defended me in my entire life. Someone as common and lowly as me."

I close my eyes and let myself feel the warmth of the Prince's body.

"You're the only friend I've ever had. Even... even if this can't last, I want you to know that I'm truly thankful for what you've done for me."

I hug him tightly to my body letting a tear slide down my cheek.

"Thank you..."

With those words, I fall asleep, exhausted and tired, with the Prince in my arms, not hearing the words being spoken in the shadows.

"Well, this is truly an interesting twist. Defending a common vassal just like that. I guess there really is hope for him. The missus will be glad to know that he might just turn out fine after all. Though... it's going to be hell to clean this place up. Guess that's why vassals were born."

With a final laugh, he blends into the darkness, leaving the Prince and I none the wiser.

-

A/N: It's done! It's DONE! That took freaking forever! I'm really sorry about the wait ladies and gents. I reedited the first few pages a numerous amount of times, trying to decide what the best approach for Laharl would be. Also I got into a 3D program that really hooked my interest in the hopes of creating a halfway decent version of Laharl. So far I just have the sword down… (sweatdrops) I probably should have just left it at writing problems huh?

I know I probably let some of you down and I'm sorry for that as well. A friend of mine advised not to post any deadlines but we both agreed that it would delay he process even more so, with no pressure on updating. All I can do is give you my word that I'll try to update quicker and not be too lazy about it. Am I overreacting here? I don't know…Let's just skip to the preview and end it at that!

One more thing though, how did you guys feel about the whole trip of anger, tenderness, and regret? Was it too much? Or did it mess with the story? Let me know in the reviews! Okay... Shutting up now…

Stay tuned for the next installment in Forgotten Memories, Chapter 7: No Waiting for the Assembly! Look forward to it!

- Response to the Reviews -

Bella:

Geh! Etna's only 1400! (sweatdrops) Geez, I really messed up on that one. I thought she was 14,000. Thanks for the correction. Trust me its not nitpicking when its that big of an age difference. Heh, heh. The correction will be posted in this update. The way I figure it, their human ages should've been around what their demon age if you got rid of the last two digits, but that would make her 14 years old and she really doesn't seem like it with certain parts of her being the way they are. (coughs) Don't kill me! (grins) Anyway now I figure it's their demon age divided by about 125. It comes to her being a little over 11 years old. Is that about right? In any case, I'm going to post it in the first chapter so that people can read it. Sorry bout the rant... On to the review response! Glad the whole switching of emotion scenes weren't really bothersome. Probably not even that emotional? I don't know. Anyway, don't worry, Arimas will defintely have some spotlight. In fact, he will play a great part in the battle which will start either next chapter or the one after. As for Laharl, I really needed him to be crazed because of what they did to Etna. He's starting to bond with her so it's important to see the reason behind it. Thanks for the review!

Dan heron:

Hey! Thanks for the review! I'm really glad you liked this chapter. My writting style goes around the lines of typing something out, deleting it, type, continue typing, then going on a roll, with the dialogue and actions flowing naturally. It means a lot that you really like my story as of yet. (grins) I appreciate it. No need to worry bout the Prince, he'll defintely have some sort of role in there. Can't spoil it for the others though, so I'll leave it at that. Keep up the reviews! They're quite motivating!

Kei-kun:

It's good to know that you didn't mind about the late updating. Or at the very least, are satisfied with it being posted up now. I can be very paranoid at times, such as alienating reviewers because of a simply detail, so I'm glad there's someone who can bring me down to earth once in a while. I hope you'll like what's to come in the next chapter!

Goldamon X:

It's quite the relief to know that you're still interested in the story. I thought I was loosing my original customers. (grins) I'm glad to know that you liked Laharl's attitude in this one. I was a little unsure if it didn't work out that well. Heh, heh. As for the memory part, it will be explained in the last chapter, which will be a while since I have no current plans to end this. But it would be pretty lame not explain the title of Forgotten Memories within the actual story. You're very quite close the theory of the memories. (looks nervous) I wonder if you'll be able to see the plot ahead of time and predict what'll come next, therefore loosing interest in this story as a whole. (blinks) Who knows? Keep up the reviews! Next chapter will be up within a week's time!

Cobra-100:

Yep! You can be certain that Krichevskoy will have a major roll later on in the story. But for now, let's just focus on a certain couple. (grins) Look forward to it!

MiStraLL:

Hey! It's a new reivewer! All right! Glad you like this story of mine! I'm a big fan of Etna and Laharl too, though most certainly you could already tell thatl. Heh, heh. It's really good to know that there are people as fanatic as you in the world. It makes life that much more interesting. (grins) I hope you'll continue to review! Hope you enjoy the next chapter too!


	7. No Waiting for the Assembly

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

-

Chapter 7: No Waiting for the Assembly

- Laharl -

I slowly come to consciousness and open my eyes. From the feel of it, I've been sleeping on a stone floor that has now been warmed by my body. As my eyes gain focus on the ceiling, I realize that this is one of the dungeons in the castle.

Why the hell am I sleeping here and why do I feel so peaceful and relaxed? I haven't felt this way since I was a little kid sleeping with my mother and father. And that was a long time ago...

I slightly scoff and yet at the same time, smile at that memory. Such things are not what demons normally experience, even as a child. Then again I'm no ordinary demon. Rather I'm a half human, half demon. Son of an Overlord and a witch.

Hold on... Why is it that I can feel something lying on top of me? It's so warm and...

Damn it, something tells me I'm not going to like this.

I raise my head off the ground to look and sure as hell there's a red headed girl lying on top of me with her arms around my body.

Question is who the hell...

"Etna!"

I throw my right hand over my mouth and mentally curse myself for the outburst. The last thing I need is for her to wake up and find us in this kind of position. I didn't ask for this but that's not going to stop her from pummeling me for this. For some reason, things always become my fault.

As I wonder the why's and how's, I study her peaceful face lying against my chest.

Mother always had this saying that you could tell the innocence of a person by their face when they're asleep.

Well then I guess that means Etna is pretty innocent, even after all she's been through. Though being innocent goes against the basic laws of the Netherworld, I still have to give her credit. Such a cute girl being able to tough it out despite all that she's been through.

Argh! What the hell am I thinking! Sympathy! Admiration! The pleasant feeling of her body against my own?

I blink before I once again go into a frenzy of mental curses that would drive even the foulest demon speechless.

I need to get out of here before I drive myself crazy. And seeing how I'm already talking to myself, it won't be long.

I try to use my sternest voice possible, which is odd since I have never used one before. I never had to since I'm next in line for the throne, so people usually see it my way. Or else.

"Etna... Time for you to get up."

And off of me.

"Mm... five more minutes. Okay, Armas?"

Before I could even question what she said, she snuggles her head against my chest, leaving me quite confused.

What the hell am I supposed to do in this type of situation?

It isn't much later until I hear her whimpering and feel her clenching her fists against my chest.

"Hm? A bad dream?"

I wrap my arm around her and press her close against my body. It seems to work as she begins to calm down and return to her peaceful slumber.

Why is it I'm doing this? I know I'll regret this later. She'll wake up, misinterpret it, and then it'll be hell on Netherworld for me.

I slightly make a frown, which doesn't last long since I really don't mean it. Rather it's something made out of frustration over not knowing the why's or how's of this whole deal.

Stupid arm... going against my will like this. You'll be punished later.

"I wonder what she's dreaming about though... Did it have something to do with this Aramis? Who is he to her? Is he her... boyfriend?"

I growl and clench my hand but I quickly let go once I realize what I'm doing. There's no reason to get angry over this.

"Then why am I?"

I let out a small sigh of defeat and decide to give up for now.

No way I'm going to get an answer now. Best not to jump to any conclusions.

Sighing again, I lean my head back against the stone floor.

"Why me? I never asked for this. I wake up and I find her sleeping against me like this. Now I'm stuck here, not being able to wake her up for fear of the consequences. Stuff like this isn't supposed to happen to me!"

Blinking, I realize that I can't even remember how I got here.

"Why _am_ I here?"

I try to remember what freaking happened the best I can.

Let's see, I was taking Etna to the Assembly so she could become my official vassal, when she suddenly went missing...

Jeez, I sure panicked about that. To think, I would get all worked up like that over a demon girl. What would the people say if they knew I cared about someone else in any way? It wouldn't do anything like jeopardize my position as Overlord... but what about my reputation? I'd never be able to live that down.

I groan and I close my eyes.

I really do need to not make such a big deal about everything.

"So what happened after that? I found her in the dungeon after getting information from Ghoss and then..."

My eyes widen slightly as I remember what it was I did.

That's right, I remember now. I found the demons surrounding Etna and in the grip of rage I killed them. All of them. Brutally, sadistically. I even enjoyed it.

I put my right hand to my face and inwardly groan.

Those were my first kills. Ever.

Not quite as invigorating as I thought it would be as a kid. Sure I felt that sense of power and control I dreamed of, but looking back on it now... it makes me a little sick. All of those blood and guts.

"Just what the hell was going on with me back then? It was almost as if I had truly lost my soul. If I even have one that is."

Che... mother's really wearing off on me. Honestly, her fairy tales of true love and souls. That's so typically human of her.

I pull my hand away from my face and look at the palm of it, covered in dried blood.

Am I even fit to hold someone as innocent as Etna so close to me like this? One so cruel and heartless as I can't be any better than those demons she's was hurt by.

I stroke the bruised marking of her face with the back of my hand, making sure to keep my anger in check.

Though, I'd never abuse her like those bastards did! The thought of it almost makes me want to kill them all over again!

I forcibly dispel any thoughts of affection towards the girl in my arm and slowly get up. It would be better if I don't get too attached to her. I can't risk her getting in danger due to her relationship with me.

I break the hug she has around me and she lets out a small whimper, but I ignore it, lifting her up in my arms. She gives a contented smile and snuggles against my chest. I let out a small 'hmph' and give a small smile.

Honestly, who does she think she is?

Looking over the remnants of the battlefield, I find my handiwork still remaining on the walls.

The bodies have already been cleaned up, along with the entrails. The blood will take much more effort of scrubbing to remove it though. And even if it would be cleaned up right now, the smell of blood would still linger.

I look back down to see her still sleeping without a care.

"Etna, I just want to let you know that I'll protect you from now on. Even if you can't hear me, just know that'll I be there for you. I promise you on my life."

With a small grunt, I start walking through the doorless entrance and up the stairs quietly.

Never again will there be a repeat of what happened today. Never again.

- Etna -

I awake slowly and noticed that I've been covered by a warm blanket. Such things are quite the luxury for someone like me, so I'll enjoy this comfort for as long as I can. After a while, I pull my arms from underneath the cloth and rub my eyes.

What a good dream... Too bad I can't remember what it was even about. All I know is that was the happiest I've been in a while.

As I look around, I can feel my dreamlike state go down the drain. Surrounding me are all sorts of weapons that don't look very friendly at all. They look as if they were used for torture.

In fact...

I look down and find that there are restraints attached to this bed, though thankfully I'm not in them.

"Jeez... what the hell is up with my luck lately? It seems that every time I wake up, I'm in some sort of compromising situation. Eh, who cares about that right now? It's high time to get out of here before something else happens."

With my mind made up, I push the blanket off of me and jump off the bed. I look at back, slightly missing its warmth, but feel more convinced to leave this place before anything happens.

I try to rush out of here as fast as I can, but my body stops suddenly as I feel the soreness of the beatings I endured because of that bastard Sid.

Damn, I'd forgotten about that till just now. If only it were a dream... If only Aramis wasn't in the hands of those loathsome freaks. But like the cruel, cold place that the Netherworld is, I am once again reminded that such things are too much to hope for. In fact, I thought I was pretty much a goner till the Prince came.

I slightly blush at the memory of my lying down next to him with my arms around his waist.

What a minute. Where is the Pri-

Before I can even finish the thought, I hear a familiar voice boom just outside my room.

"What do you mean they refuse to see me!"

I blink and smile slightly. Speak of the demon...

I walk out of the room, which is missing a fourth wall and head right, to the direction of the Prince's voice.

"You tell the Dark Assembly that if they ever want to see the light of day again, they'll hold one more session or suffer the consequences!"

After hearing his threat, I couldn't help but I grin. How typical of him. Threatening those with higher power than his own. After a few more steps of walking, I was able to see the Prince with his hands on his hips in an arrogant manner.

Ignoring the throbbing pain, I quickly run up to the Prince and hug him from behind.

"Wha!"

He turns around in my arms and raises an eyebrow.

"Um... good to see you too? I guess this means you're feeling better."

"Yup!"

I pause for a second, trying to decide how to word this.

"Uh, Prince… I just want to thank you. If you hadn't showed up when you did... I don't know what would've done without you."

His eyes seemed to darken and he looks to the floor on his right.

"It was nothing special..."

This is strange... He's not boasting in his usual manner. Something must be wrong. He's probably not feeling well about it. Probably better if I change the subject.

"So Prince what's up with all that yelling I heard earlier?"

"Oh..."

Looking down at our hug, he quickly turns his head to the assembly cage. I see his face turn a few shades red, due to anger or something else, I don't know.

"These fools in the Assembly think that they can just snub me off since its already closing time. They obviously have no idea of who they are dealing with! I'm the successor for the title of Overlord!"

We hear the clinking sounds of a chain and we both turn our heads to see a cage being lowered down. The Prince grins at that blue haired girl inside the cage.

"Hey Pleinair! How'd that threat work out!"

She looks at us from the cage until she was finally lowered down. As she soon as she gets out, she walks towards the two of us.

"Well, oddly enough it worked. They've decided to see you Prince, though most of the senates have already left. They'll begin the next session in about 5 minutes."

"Some already left, eh? Good that'll be less trouble for me in case they decide to oppose me."

Pleinair sighs and looks at the Prince.

"Must you always do things the hard way? Ever considered just... bribing them Prince?"

"No! They are not worthy of any items I possess, no matter how useless or weak they are! They're nothing but power hungry mongrels! Speaking of which, I better not find any of you in the Senate opposing me! It took a us a whole week before we were able to find a replacement for the weapon shop!"

She turns her head to me, then back to the Prince, smiling.

"No worries, Prince. I don't have any plans to take part in this session. However, if I may make I suggestion, I think that you should fix up your vassal to be, before going on. She does look rather hurt."

The Prince's eyes widen and stares at Pleinair.

"How did you find out about that! No... _who_ told you she was going to be my vassal!"

She once again smiles, not really intimated by the raising of his voice. She must be used to these type of things by now.

"Let's say word gets around... but I mean it. You should really do something about all those bruises and cuts. They look rather painful."

He looks me over before breaking the hug and wrapping his arm around my shoulders. He then turns his head and talks over his shoulder.

"Good point. See you in a few Pleinair!"

He then began walking off with me. Her only response was a small wave to us.

"Uh, where are we going Prince?"

"Back to the room you woke up in, so we can fix you up."

Seeing the doubt in my eyes, he reassures me with a small squeeze on my hand.

"Trust me. There's nothing to be afraid of."

I was none too eager to go back there, what with all those weapons and possible situations, but the Prince told me to trust him. And despite lessons learned, I did trust him.

- Laharl -

She seems a little tense. Can't really think of a reason as to why she would be. Hm... Oh well.

"Well here we are!"

Stopping in front of the Netherworld Hospital, I grin to Etna. Though my only response from her was a meek smile.

"What? Don't tell me you have a phobia of hospitals?"

She blinks before widening her eyes and pointing at the said section.

"That place is a hospital? But I've read about hospitals in the human books! They're supposed to be places in which you heal and get better! Not torture the patients to death!"

After hearing that, I can't help but chuckle. And here I thought I made a big deal about things.

"Are you talking about these weapons? That's just for show, Etna. You know? Just to freak people out? Might as well have a sense of humor, if you're going to work in a place as morbid as this. Well, at least it's not the coroners."

I chuckle before walking inside. I trace the surface of an axe hanging on the wall and then look back at her with a smile.

"But honestly, we don't even use half of these things, if at all. So what do say you come in here and we'll make you good as new?"

She slightly smiles and sits down on the bed I left her on.

"Well since it's already closing time, I'll have to be the one to fix you up. Is that okay by you?"

After her nod of approval, I pulled up a chair and started looking her over. I graze my fingers off her check before gently turning her head sideways.

"Hm, the cuts I can just wrap in bandages. The bruises are a bit of a problem though. Guess I'll just have to make due with what I have..."

Pulling out some gauze, I begin to wrap it around her arm. I have to do it slowly yet firmly, so it works out best for her.

Guess that makes one more useful thing that comes from reading books on the human world.

"So... um Etna?"

She looks down and smiles at me.

"Yeah, Prince?"

"Uh... what exactly happened after I passed out?"

"Oh that..."

Hm? It looks like she's hesitating. Almost as if she's trying to decide whether or not to tell me something.

Either way, I'm not going to get an answer from her by staring at her eyes. Though, I gotta admit, I do like watching her fidget under my gaze.

I finish with the wrapping of the legs and toss the used roll. I then take out another roll of gauze, pull forward her left arm, and begin wrapping around the cuts.

"Go on..."

"Well, with no more enemies left, I was able to relax and then I began to feel toll of what my body went through, so I just laid myself beside you and lost consciousness too."

Hm, she's definitely not telling me something. Her answer was too rushed and non-challant. Should I force it out of her? ... Nah, it's much more fun if I find out myself. Sides, she's bound to have a good reason for keeping whatever it is a secret.

"Oh, okay then."

I cut the gauze and put the roll down on the floor. I then pull out a jar that contains a substance used for healing bruises. This will definitely be useful for her.

"Alright. Now I need you to lie down on your stomach."

"Huh?"

Her eyes meet mine with a questioning look. In response, I hold up the jar in front of her.

"It's for your bruises. It'll numb the pain and help heal them. But if you don't want me applying it to you, then I guess you could always do it by yourself."

After all, I don't want to force her to feel uncomfortable. I'll treat her with respect and privacy as a vassal should be treated. I'll prove to her that I deserve her loyalty more than my father.

"It's okay. You can do it. Besides you know what you're doing."

She lies down on the mattress with her arms resting under her head. Her tail sways back and forth before finally lying down at her side.

Might as well get this thing on the road.

I unscrew the cover and dip my fingers in the gel. Deciding to start with her back, I set the container down and gently rub the gel on the areas that are bruised. As soon as I do, I hear a sharp intake of breath from Etna and her body tenses up, with her wings spreading out.

"Is everything okay? Do you want me to stop?"

She remains silent before her body relaxes once again.

"No, it's nothing. It was just a little cold is all."

Shrugging, I continue on until all the bruises have been covered. By the time I'm done, I see Pleinair waiting at the entrance of the hospital.

"They're ready to see you Prince."

I smirk and offer my hand to Etna. She takes it and I pull her up so we're at eye level.

"It's about time. Now we can finally get this show on the road. So how do you feel my vassal-to-be?"

She smiles back at me and flexes a little.

"Never better. Thanks a lot Prince. Who knew you were so good as a healer? You know, maybe if the whole Overlord thing doesn't work out, you can always fall back on your medical experience."

"Hah, hah. I'm becoming Overlord, no matter what. It's fate. Destined to happen. Just like how it was fate that I met you and that we helped each other out."

She blinks and looks at me slightly confused.

"How'd I help you out?"

"Well..."

_What will I do to this girl, who woke me up? Beat her black and blue? Nah... It's no fun if the girl can't even fight back. Force her to scrub the entire castle? Nah... That's too cliché. Jeez... I'm going to have to think about this one. Well, whatever it is, I'll make sure that she'll pay._

"The truth is..."

"_Well look, I'm not all gung-ho about the idea of you deciding that you want to be loyal to two separate people and I do expect you to make a decision about it eventually."_

"It's..."

"_Damn it! Where'd the hell did she go! I've been looking around for her for hours and I still haven't found her! I should never have let her out of my sight!"_

"A..."

"_It looks like I made you cry again, Etna."_

"_I'll have to work on that in the future..."_

"_I'm sorry..."_

"Secret."

I grin at her disappointed reaction and toss her a spear from the wall. She manages to snap out of her own world just in time to grab the weapon in midair.

"That's just in case the senates want to disagree with anything."

She mimics my grin and holds the spear with both hands.

"Got it."

There's a small pause of silence between the two of us, knowing that a battle's coming our way. It's broken quickly though when Pleinair coughs, holds up her arm, and points at her wrist to indicate time.

"Yeah, yeah. We know. So you ready, Etna?"

"Just lead the way my Prince."

I pause for a moment before chuckling and walking on. Turning my head, I see Etna's following right behind me, willing to give it her all.

"So Prince... ever plan on telling me this secret of yours?"

"Perhaps... one day..."

She shrugs and continues following me on.

Perhaps one day...

"_Etna, I just want to let you know that I'll protect you from now on. Even if you can't hear me, just know that I'll be there for you. I promise you on my life."_

I'll tell you how much you've truly changed me

-

A/N: Another chapter completed! I stayed up all night on this Saturday, but it was worth it! Sorry if this was a little late for some people. Though I'm kinda glad I waited. That way I was able to see that there are some other fans on this fic out there. Of course, this won't mean that I'll be waiting 3 or 4 months next time, just to see how many reviews I'll get. Heh, heh. I'm not that shallow! (blinks) Well, actually... Nah...

I gotta admit that not too much happened in this chapter plot wise. This was kind of an information chapter, just to let you guys know where Laharl and Etna stand with each other. I was hoping for the assembly to take place this chapter, but it didn't work out. If I had put it in here, then it would be over 20 pages long. Seraph forbid I ever do something like that. (grins) Actually if it would be okay by you guys, then I could do that. Though it might delay the updating by a small bit. Looks like I'll have to move the fight between Etna and Sid for one more chapter too. Sorry! It'll be something to look forward to though. It'll have quite the plot twist, though maybe some of you already have it figured out... Eh.

Something freaky though... On Saturday morning I was able to imagine almost exactly what I wanted for the ending of this story. Does that mean, mentally, I'm almost done? I hope not. I want to continue this as long as possible. Let me know what you guys want. A quick story or a prolonged story. You guys are in a sense the true authors and I'm a puppet that does the work. (makes puppet gestures) Cool...

By the way, in case any of you are wondering, those action words within the sentences aren't my fault. FFN is becoming really against any script format, though for the love of me, I can't figure out why. It's not that big of a deal. This means that anytime I enter an asterisk, which is that star symbol, or those brackets to the right of the letter P on the keyboard, they are automatically taken out. I'll just have to settle on using parenthesis as the action thing. Which means no more sub-thoughts. (frowns) Also, they no longer allow any of those makeshift anime happy faces… (sigh) If you don't really care, then I'm sorry for the rant. I needed to let you guys know though.

So anyway, how'd I do on this one? Any complaints? As always suggestion and comments are welcome for the reviews. Though I seem to have received more comments than suggestions. Does that mean you guys are satisfied with my work so far? (grins) I hope so! Look forward to the next chapter and I'll look forward to your reviews!

Stay tuned for the next installment in Forgotten Memories, Chapter 8: No Training for the Fight!

- Response to the Reviews -

dan heron:

Wow! That was a quick review! (grins) Not that I'm complaining… Much thanks for the compliment. It's always good to hear that I'm doing a good job, since I'm not the boasting type. About the multiple stories after this, I'll think on it. Which means more than likely I will. Heh, heh. However I'm not sure where to go after this one is done. Maybe the aftermath of Disgaea, in which they recall these "forgotten memories"? We'll see! Really glad you like this one too! Look forward to the next chapter and I'll look forward to your next review!

Kitty Defender:

Lol. Cool! A new reviewer! You might be disappointed on how quickly I update, but I will try to go as fast as I can without making it… rushed I guess is the word. I'm not going to be as lazy as I was for this chapter, so I'll give the update less than two weeks. It's good to know that you like this story enough to review. Most people read and leave. (frown) Here's hoping for some more scenes on a certain couple!

redruM:

Glad to know you're loving the story! I enjoy reading the story over a few times myself, just for certain scenes. I might re-edit the first few chapters, making them longer or better in general. Always great to see more Laharl/Etna fans here! Hope you'll like the next chapter!

StitchedOblivion:

You can expect the next chapter in about two weeks. Maybe less if I can pull myself away from these Nippon Ichi games long enough. Lol. All these months and I'm still going on about them. Well it's like the game strategy for Phantom Brave says, "As any serious gamer could tell you, there's winning a game, and then there's completely and utterly defeating a game." Guess I'm going with the second. (grins) Hope to see you in the next batch of reviews!

Bella:

Lol. Wow, you got me again. (scratches head) I was actually uncertain about the spelling this time, but I was too lazy and in a hurry to pop in my Disgaea disk and check it out. Well, it's fixed now! Guess this means I'll be counting on you for any story related corrections. (grins) Hope that's okay by you,. It seems to come rather easily to you. Either that or you're purposely checking for those, just to tell me in the reviews. (sweatdrop) Probably not... Grr… you're so lucky you can do those anime face in the reviews, since I can't post them up on stories anymore. Never knew you were a fan of Laharl and Flonne as well. Then again I have no complaints on that pair either. Heh, heh. Be looking forward to your next review!

Claws-of-Death:

Thanks a bunch! The whole writer's block thing isn't so much as an issue as, well… forcing myself to actually type something. I know it sounds rather lazy of me, but on the bright side it allows for some new ideas come to mind. Best things are those that come from real life, though my life is really nothing compared to this. I'm just trying to make excuses. Heh, heh. I'll assume by end it you mean end the chapter and not the story. At least I hope so. Lol. See ya next chapter!

Goldamon X :

Pretty good? Not great? Hm… I'll have to do better next chapter. What was it too little of something? Or was it too much? The pace in which this story is moving? Heh, heh. I'm just guessing on this. As for the prolonged story, I'm hoping for that as well. I'm really getting into this business of writing, so it should continue for quite a while. This story will go on until I feel it has reached its limit. Then I'll move on to the Disgaea present time world and see it from there. It may be a trilogy, yet. (grins)


	8. No Training for the Fight

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

---

Chapter 8: No Training for the Fight

- Etna -

As the cage rises up, both Laharl and I remain in silent while we contemplate the fight up ahead.

Despite the few numbers of senators waiting for us, it still doesn't get change the fact that they are quite strong. As of right now, Krichevskoy's own vassals are the only allies we would have that would be able to stand a good chance against the Dark Assembly, should they refuse his proposal.

How could they not? They hate him quite a lot for simply being who he is. Unfortunately, they do not belong to the Prince, and even so he would refuse to use them. Why is he so against any help from his father? Indirect or not?

King Krichevskoy is a great demon and a wise ruler. And though I am not necessarily happy with the fact that he is married, to a human wife at that, he does have good judgment. Any single one of the king's vassals would be a great asset to our upcoming fight. But no, instead Prince would go in there relying on just the strength of himself and me.

Man, this is insane…

I tighten my grip on the spear I'm holding and look at Laharl, who is standing calmly against the cage. His sword is embedded in the steel floor with his hands resting on the hilt.

Is he even nervous at all? Surely, he can't be so arrogant as to not know how strong the Assembly can really be. They have levels as low as ours that got as high as those in the 3 digit categories. There's no way in hell we'd be able to beat that.

"Hn, are you nervous Etna?"

I snap out of my thoughts and glance Laharl whose eyes are upon me. Seeing my confused reaction, he gives a smirk almost mockingly so. Taking his smirk as a challenge, I straighten up and look him in the eyes. I cross my arms over my chest and give him a smug look.

"Who me? Puh-lease… Only thing I'm nervous about is if there will be enough of those old farts for me to finish off."

The Prince gave me a skeptical look before shaking his head back and forth. He then gets up from his crouched position and starts walking towards me.

"Is that so? You have no doubts about surviving this fight then?"

I feel my heart skip a beat at the thought of it.

It never occurred to me that I might perish. Sure loosing always came to mind, but definitely not death. I'm… I don't think I'm ready to die. I still need to protect Aramis and give him the life he really deserves. Plus, I have to finish off Maderas so I know he'll never be able to put another family through what Aramis and myself had to go through.

"So, Prince… What is it that you're trying to say? You don't think I'll be able to live through this?"

He gives a sigh of frustration and sits cross-legged right in front of me. Resting his chin on the back of his hands, he leans in towards me.

"Look… honest to the Seraph, I want for this to work out. I want you to be my vassal more than anyone else. However, I don't want to loose you in the process."

Laharl gives a grin before leaning back with his hands now resting on the floor behind him.

"After all, it would kind of suck if you were to just kick the bucket after everything we've been through. Ya know?"

I smile at the bluntness of his words, but the slight humor of the moment doesn't take away from the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"You have quite the poetic touch when it comes to words, don't you?"

"Heh, I guess I've never been that great when it came to dealing with these kind of things. I'm not exactly the type of demon that speaks his mind when it comes to his emotions."

I feign a shocked expression and look at him.

"You? Having trouble expressing yourself? Get out!"

He rolls his eyes and I grin at him, just to let him know I wasn't actually serious.

"Hah, hah. You're such a riot, you know that, Etna?"

His eyes turn somber and stares at me, making me feel rather unnerved. It's as if he's peering into my soul. And if there's one thing that's not meant to be seen, it's what lies in my soul. My agony. My pain. My past.

"Look Etna… I know this may be getting old but I want to be completely clear on this. This will be your last chance to back out our deal here. We don't have to go through with this, you know. If you're having doubts then just tell me."

My eyes soften at the thought of his words. He really is thoughtful for a demon. Hm, on second thought, better make that for an arrogant, slightly spoiled prince of a demon.

Well, at least come through in words when it really matters.

"I appreciate the opportunity, Prince. I really do. And believe me, if it were anyone else but you, I'd be long gone by now. But c'mon, what kind of vassal do you take me for? Wasn't it you who said you didn't want someone who'd have loyalty issues in a critical fight?"

He gives a small smirk before scratching his chin.

"I may have said something like that."

"Anyway, while your offer still remains, my answer will be unchanged. You are _not_ getting rid of me that easy."

The Prince gives me a small smile to me, which makes me feel more relaxed at heart. Almost like it were a smile of reassurance.

"Thanks Etna. For sticking by me."

I return his smile with one of my own.

"Anytime Prince… Anytime."

- Laharl -

By the time we reach the top, I can feel the adrenaline start to kick in. This will be my first real fight, aside from those bastards in the dungeon. The reason I'm considering this to be a fight is because the chances of the Assembly approving me decision are slim to none.

Those senates bastards hate me. And though this fight may not be easy, I'm certain that we can pull it off in the end. Who would've thought that I'd find someone this willing to be my vassal? Heh, makes me feel more than what I'm really worth.

So let's see, right now we're in the entrance room where the cages lie, then beyond that will be the appointment/schedule room, and then finally will be the court with the Dark Assembly.

As we step out of the cage, I wrap my hand around Etna's before giving it a small squeeze and letting go.

I know she's nervous and I'm starting to feel a little nervous too. Though, it's more so about her than myself. For some reason I can't explain, I _really_ don't want her hurt. And naturally if she's going to be in the path of danger, I'll recklessly throw myself in the middle of it anytime.

Che, I must be going soft.

Turning to her, I open my mouth, hoping to say something to lighten the mood.

"Well, looks like this is the moment of-"

I stop suddenly, feeling a huge, yet familiar presence overcome my own. Almost instantly, I recognize who it is and give out a repressed growl.

Why the _hell_ is he here?

"Uh, Prince? Is everything okay?"

To my right I see Etna peering at me with some concern in her eyes. I quickly force myself to cover up my current emotions and give her a small grin.

"Yeah, sorry about that. It was just a reflex. You know, the rush before the fight."

"Oh…"

I can see in her eyes that she holds some doubt, but I just look away. I need to deal with this fool right now before we start anything.

"Hey, listen Etna. Could you go up ahead and make sure the appointment is still good? Wouldn't want to come all this way for nothing."

"Uh, sure thing Prince. What about you?"

Avoiding her gaze, I turn my eyes to the ceiling and to the corners, looking for him.

"I just need to do some thinking. You know, come up with some sort of plan. I'll catch up with you in a bit, okay?"

"Oh, okay. I guess I'll see you inside then."

I give her a nod and watch as she exits into the other room. I wait until the door is completely closed before addressing the annoying presence.

"Alright, old man! Show yourself right now! I know you're here!"

Sure enough, my suspicions were confirmed as a shadow on the wall slowly morphs into the shape of a full-grown demon with a cape blowing to the side.

"Well, well my boy. It looks like all that training of yours is actually paying off. To sense me in such a well hidden spot."

He puts his hand to his head and gives a small chuckle.

"Of course, it could just be that the bond between the two of us is getting even stronger. Wouldn't you agree, my son?"

Snarling, I pull out my sword and point it at him.

"Shut up and tell just what the hell you think you're doing here. Last time I checked, Overlord's don't stalk their sons for the fun of it. Don't you have more pressing issues to reside over? Like, say, making sure the Netherworld isn't being invaded at the moment?"

My old man puts his hands behind his head and leans against the wall.

"Stalking? Is that how you see it. I think a more appropriate phrase would be… oh say, making sure my son doesn't do anything stupid. Like perhaps, challenging the Assembly at weak levels with weak weapons. You're too young to be going through teenage angst, so please tell me… why is it that you have a death wish?"

"Oh, shut up! I have no intention of loosing before I take your title as Overlord!"

"I'll tell you what. I, by myself, am strong enough to take on all members of the assembly single-handedly. If you're able to at least hit me, then I'll know you'll stand some sort of a fighting chance. So what say you, son of mine?"

I growl and move into my fighting stance. Pulling out my sword, I slice downward through the air. Without moving out of position, I turn my head upward to glare at his challenging gaze.

"Anytime. Anywhere."

He grins and pulls out his infamous golden spear and twirls it around before getting into his fighting stance as well.

So… he's going all out then. He must be if he plans on using his Longinus. Well, this should be fun. I wonder if I even stand a chance…

"Then how about right now. Right here."

Well only one way to find out…

"Hmph, fine by me!"

I charge at him with my sword to my right. He twirls his Longinus and shifts into a defensive mode.

Che… if he thinks he's going to win by defending then he's got another thing coming!

I jump into the air and swing the sword vertically down at him, which he blocks with little effort. With our weapons still locked, he spins around, sending me to right behind him.

Crap! My back's exposed!

Turning around quickly, I'm able to see a one handed spear thrust come right at me, one that I narrowly manage to avoid by moving to the side. I'm about to charge at him again, until I see him grip the spear by both hands and swing horizontally, sending me flying. Bracing myself for the impact, I hit the wooden floor and slide across it.

"Damn you!"

He rests his spear on his right shoulder and smirks.

"Don't tell me that this is the limit of your training my son… and after all that effort you've put into it too. What a shame! You'll never become an Overlord at this rate."

With those words, I feel my anger take over judgment and start swinging recklessly at him. However, despite the multitude of my slashes, not one of them hits their mark. No matter from what angle, he merely sidesteps or ducks.

Damn it, is he playing with me? That arrogant bastard… I'll kill him!

"Hey! If you're so freaking confident in your abilities, why don't you try and hit me now?"

He ducks under one of my sideways slashes like it was nothing and shrugs at me.

"If you say so. Just remember, you asked for it!"

Twirling the spear, he jabs the wooden end of it into my gut, forcing me to skid across the floor. He taps his fingers on his chin and looks at the space between the two of us.

"Hm, this should be enough distance for it… Brace yourself my son! Feel the awesome wrath brought on by a true master of the spear."

With those words he leapt into the air and began to summon red orbs of energy.

What the hell? Is he doing that attack I did before in the dungeon?

I continue to watch closely to find out it isn't the same attack. The red orbs slowly shift themselves to the form of red energy spears.

Damn, so that's his game… This is going to be one hell of an attack. Can I even survive it?

I'm almost about to consider to call it quits, but decide against it. Aside from my demon pride, there is something else that pulls at me.

Etna. What would she think if I were to just give up? How would I ever be able to face her if I did this? I need to show her that I'm better than _him_. I won't let her down. I'll become someone that she can be proud of.

Raising my hands into the air, I begin to summon energy orbs as well. Though these explosive orbs will not be shape shifting into anything, for they work well enough as it is. Not to mention the little detail that I don't even know how. Perhaps due to the fact that I've only learned this attack less than a day ago.

"An Overlord's Wrath? Is that what you plan to counter my magnificent attack with? How droll."

Overlord's Wrath? Is that what it's called? I'll have to remember that.

With searing determination in both of our eyes, we send our attacks at each other at the same time. I can only watch as the red spears tear through my orbs, forcing them to explode prematurely. Though my attack had not been able to hit my father, it had served its purpose. The explosions that were created served as a veil for me to get to his back. Dodging any of his red spears that made it through my barrier, I quickly run behind him as he lands from his attack.

"Gotcha!"

Whipping his head around, he is just in time to see me launch one of my other attacks. This is called the Blade Rush where I dash at him while slashing down vertically. This time, he is the one that barely manages to dodge, though I did manage to catch his cape, embedding both it and my sword in the wooden floor.

"My cape!"

He looks back and forth between his cape and myself, speaking to me in a somewhat whinny voice.

"Was that really necessary Laharl?"

He gives it a tug, only to find that it's not that willing to come out of the grave I made for it. I let go of the embedded sword and jump into the air. Looking down upon him, with his cape in one hand and his spear in the other, I smirk.

"This is the end old man!"

I then allow myself to fall head first, with my fist leading me.

This is one of my own special abilities. I call it the Blazing Knuckle!

"Ha! Here I come!"

I impact the ground at his speed, sending a column of fire around me, burning my old man to a crisp and sending him staggering backwards. Getting up, I see him give a snort, sending some smoke flying comically out of his mouth.

"Well now… that was interesting. Guess I underestimated you there."

He tugs his cape with enough force until in gets ripped by the sword, freeing it in the process. As he starts polishing his slightly charred spear with the tattered cape, till it regains its golden look. He then looks and grins at me.

"Looks like you're getting stronger after all my son. Maybe you do stand a chance against those fools up there."

Chuckling, he throws his spear next to me, embedding it less than an inch away from my feet. I don't even flinch. Instead, I just stare at him with a questioning look.

"Consider that a gift for your little spear wielding girlfriend. And as for you my son…"

He reaches behind his back and lifts out a sword out a sheath strapped on his back.

"This is the Cosmic Blade, a rarity in itself. Its power is quite great and may be more than you can handle. Though, if I am correct, then you should have no problem adapting to its awesome strength and using its full potential."

After tossing the sword at my feet, he turns his back and begins walking towards the cages with his shoulders shrugged.

"Then again, what do I know? You may very well be destroyed in the process of trying to master it. Heh, heh."

I snarl at his back and forcefully yank the sword off of the ground.

Too much for me to handle? Che… over my dead body. Though hopefully that won't be the case. Heh, heh.

"You're on old man! Just you watch! I'll demonstrate power that'll have you begging for me to be Overlord!"

"Me? Begging?"

He gives off a haughty laugh and walks into the cage. Still laughing, he pulls the lever, allowing the cage to descend back into the castle. However, during the process, it begins to sputter and stops halfway into the ground with his eyes at knee level. His laughter abruptly stops and he flips the switch up and down several times to no avail.

"What? You can't be serious!"

After a few more tries he kicks the cage with an angry look on his face.

"Damn it! Work you stupid piece of machinery! This is the reason why we spray the vassal's quarter with deodorant instead of pesticide? This is why they get injected with morphine instead of their annual hepitiaus shot? This is why they drink from the castle's sewer water instead of pure mountain water?"

I raise my eyebrow at the outburst as to which he blinks and chuckles nervously. Coughing into his hand, he gives a small chuckle.

"Heh, heh… Just goes to show you the reliability of human technology, eh?"

I give him no response, merely staring at him with a mixture of confusion and amusement. He answers my gaze with a somewhat angry voice.

"Oh, shut up… This could've happened to anyone you know."

With those words, he spins around, disappearing in a whirl of black smoke. I merely shake my head sadly at the display and turn around. I then stop, noticing that something was wrong.

"Wait a minute… spear wielding-? She's not my girlfriend!"

My statement falls on deaf ears, however as he already disappeared.

I sigh and wrench Longinus out of the wooden ground. Brushing off the splinters from the tip, I stare at the face of the spear.

"Well, that was loads of fun. I trust you'll give Etna full use of your powers, Longinus?"

The little mouth on the spear moves to answer my question.

"Indeed. Though it is by the king's order and not your own. You have not mastered the skill of the spear, and as of such you have to right to demand anything from one such as I."

I shrug at the reason, not really caring so long as the end result was the same.

"Whatever. At least it's not because of any power difference between me and my father…"

"Well, actually-"

"Shut it!"

With those words silencing the spear, I pick up the Cosmic Blade and angrily walk towards the door, forcefully opening it to see a startled Etna staring at me.

"Hey Prince! I checked the reservations. They're ready at any time… So did you finish with whatever it was you needed to do?"

Twirling the legendary spear around in one hand, I shrug.

"More or less. By the way, I happened to come upon a gift for you. You may find it useful, what with you being a big spear fanatic and all."

I then toss her Longinus, which she catches with her free hand, her other occupied with the lesser spear from the hospital. Almost instantly she is able to feel the strength increase and the improvement of her abilities. Her eyes widen and she looks at me shocked.

"Wow! This power of this spear is amazing! Prince, where did you get such a thing?"

I angrily growl under my breath, annoyed that once again _he _managed to show me up. This time he was able to impress Etna without even trying.

Damn him…

"Let's just say it's a loan. Hopefully, it'll be more than enough to ensure your survival."

She looks at the spear with wonder, before quickly looking back at me.

"But what about you? Don't you have a special weapon too?"

I roll my eyes at her concern over me. Honestly, I've never met a demon so worried about everything or for that matter about me. As much as appreciate her kindness, I'm going to have to purge her of that and make her more demon-like. The way she is now, she won't be able to survive for a single day in the real Netherworld. Thankfully, the worst she dealt with inside this castle was mere bullies.

"Hm, of course I have weapon of my own! I'm not so foolish as to charge head first into a situation without being prepared."

I could tell she about to add something to that, but decided against it. I decide to ignore it and instead, pull out the Cosmic Blade. I swing the blade, testing out its power and speed. The wind caused by the slash is enough to ruffle Etna's hair, causing a surprised reaction from her. I, in return, smirk at the power displayed by only a small slash.

Truly this is a great weapon, but that doesn't mean I'm keeping it. That would be like leaning on a crutch. A crutch given to me by my father. Hm, no thanks… this is just going to be a one-time thing.

Sighing, I look at Etna and at the portal, that once gone through, may very well seal my fate.

Oh well, might as well get this over with…

I pull out a bottle of Sake and gulp it down to increase the SP I lost with that Overlord's Wrath. Though I don't necessarily approve on relying on human goods, it does get the job done. Just hope that I don't end up drunk and make a huge fool of myself. Wouldn't that be a lame way to die?

"Hm, whatever. Are you ready Etna?

- Etna -

Nodding to the Prince, I walk towards the panel, which leads to the Assembly room, with more confidence. For some reason, holding this spear in my hands makes me feel as if I could do almost anything. It's not just the sense of power that comes with it either. There's something strange… almost familiar about this golden spear.

Where have I seen it before? Think Etna, where the hell was it that you've seen a spear? Who in the world even uses a spear nowadays?

I blink, feeling my heart stop momentarily, realizing who this spear… No, who Longinus belongs to. Stepping on the panel after the Prince, I'm able to manifest only one thought, before I'm sent to the place where the fight of my lifetime will take place.

Holy shit… This belongs to King Krikevskoy…

Snapping out of my senses, I realize that we're surrounded by darkness with a single spotlight on the two of us. Suddenly a booming voice sounds from nowhere, slightly freaking me out.

"He who has summoned the Assembly, step forward now."

I turn to the Prince, who slightly growls and walks a few steps in front of me.

"Ah, it is the son of Krikevskoy… and why is it that you have summoned us here today, Prince Laharl?"

He takes a small breath before raising his head upward, to the darkness.

"Dark Assembly, I come before you today to consent your approval of recruiting my first vassal, the demon known as Etna."

"The cost shall be 1,000 mana points plus the approval of the senate. Do you accept these terms?"

Laharl crosses his arms over his chest and laughs.

"Of course I do! I knew what I had to do long before I had to do it."

"Hm, then step forward to the new light."

Just then another spotlight appears, out of the range of the old one. Laharl walks out of the one we shared together and into the new one. When he finally stops in the center of it, I watch as his body glows a dark red aura and then fades away.

"The mana has been taken. Now the hearing shall begin."

All of the lights in the room suddenly turn on and I squint my eyes, having been in the dark for a while. When I finally get used to it, I'm able to see all the levels of rows ahead of us. All in all, I would have to say that there are about 20 senators here. Not that many considering that I expected an army of them. But I have to remember that they are all considerably strong. They consisted of dragons, golems, faeries, zombies, and a surt. Not exactly the most comforting selection of monsters.

Hm, they don't feel like ordinary monsters though. They seem… more powerful. I hope we aren't biting off more than we can chew…

My thoughts are interrupted as the golem nearest to us speaks, addressing the Prince.

"Prince Laharl, what offerings do you present to us to further convince us of your right to be bestowed with a vassal of your own?"

Even though he's only a few feet ahead of me, I'm able to hear his growl and the sound of his fists clenching.

"Offerings? I will give you no such things! I'm not about to bribe you fools for something that I should be entitled to! You must be dumber than you look!"

I feel a sinking feeling in my gut as he says those words, knowing that this would not end pretty. Kind of zoning out, I take a deep breath trying to calm myself. As I do so, I could swear I hear something like a palm being slapped on the forehead and a voice saying somewhere around the lines, 'Way to go you dolt. I'm sure they'll _really_ like that…'

Who does that familiar voice belong to? Could it have been King Krichevskoy? No, after all why would he be here? He must have more important things to do. It's just a hallucination caused by stress. After all, this hearing could be going better…

"Fools? Dumber than we look? How dare you, you impudent prince! I have heard all I needed to hear. Do the rest of you agree?"

The others nod somewhat angry or miffed depending on how they took it.

"Then it is time to cast the vote. Dark Assembly what is your say in this matter?"

The golem is the first to vote. He steps onto the surface in front of him, raising his hands in the air, and giving the first of what was bound to be many disapprovals later.

"Nay!"

As soon as he says this, the next one rises and the next one as well, all giving off similar judgments until all but one disapproved of my employment. I nervously look at the Prince, who keeps his back to me.

I wonder what he's feeling right now… Isn't he nervous at all?

The golem, now glaring, casts his gaze to the Prince.

"There you have it, foolish Prince. Your proposal has been rejected. Now… will you leave in peace?"

Still looking at the Prince, I watch as his shoulders begin to move up and down and I hear him start to chuckle. Soon it turns into a full-blown laugh, with his back arched and his right hand covering his face as he laughs. Slowly letting his hand slide down his face, he straightens up and draws the Cosmic Sword from his back.

"Heh, heh. Leave in peace? That's a good one. I came here, expecting a fight. So if you guys aren't going to let me keep my vassal, then there's only one thing I can do."

He turns to me and smirks, causing me to grin right back at him. I pull out Longinus in front of him to let him know I'm ready to fight. The spear pulses a few times before unleashing all of its power into me. I feel myself strengthen over a hundred fold and slip into a fighting stance. Laharl then turns back and points his sword at the entire row of the Dark Assembly.

"Looks like I'll just have to persuade you by force."

I jump and land right next to him, ready to fight side by side. Things are looking kind of bleak so I have to be ready for anything.

"Hey, Etna."

Still in my fighting stance, I turn my head to him. He refuses to look at me though, keeping his eyes on the enemies ahead of us.

"Yeah, Prince?"

"As your mentor, I have only one command for you and no matter what, I want you to follow it flawlessly."

"Uh, okay."

"Don't die because if you do, then I'll never forgive you. Do understand?"

I slightly chuckle to myself.

"Always the way with words, huh, Prince? Just make sure that you're not too worried about me, that you forget about your own safety."

My comment catches him completely off guard. His eyes bulge and his mouth hangs wide open, stuttering. However, he quickly recovers from the shock and regains his composure. Well, for the most part anyway.

"W-what? Worried? Me? I-I never said I was worried!"

I grin at him and slide back into fighting stance.

"Whatever you say, Prince. But…"

Pausing, I turn my head to look at him one last time.

"The same goes for you, okay? Don't get yourself hurt over me."

He shakes his head and goes back into his stance as well.

"If you think I'd simply stand by and watch as you get yourself killed, then you're even crazier than I thought."

Grinning, I face the assembly, no longer worried about being alone in this world. Though by all means, I really should be more concerned with the battle up ahead.

Oh well…

"Hey Prince. First person to reach 10 kills gets treated to dinner. What do you say?"

"Heh, no problem. For future reference, I'm not into any of those fancy places that require you to dress up. Just something above fast food will suit me."

"Well then, it's agreed. It'll be a date."

His eyes bulge yet again and he turns to me.

"What! A date?"

"Heh, heh. See you at the finish line, Prince! And for future references, I _do_ like fancy places! Hope you can afford it!"

I then rush off, leaving a bewildered Prince chasing after me.

- Laharl -

A date, huh? She must be crazy.

Jumping in the air, I send out a Wind Cutter, hitting the enemies in front of Etna, damaging a golem and a faerie pretty bad. She then jumps and impales the golem from the air, killing him off. She turns, grins, and sticks her tongue out at me.

"That's one for me!"

I sneer and break for the right then forward.

However, she must be even crazier to think that I'll be treating.

Grinning, I charge up an Overlord's Wrath that hitting a dragon, golem, and zombie, instantly killing the undead member. I then charge forward with a Blade Rush, killing the damaged golem. For the finale, I dash in a circle, creating a whirlwind, sending the dragon upward before I send him crashing down with my sword.

"Wow, this sword isn't half bad after all…"

I turn to see how Etna is doing, noting that she killed that faerie I damaged earlier. The red headed girl jumps up a few layers, then stops, allowing her to be surrounded by a bunch of demons.

Damn it! She's going to get herself killed!

I'm about to rush over there till I see her spinning her golden spear. She then rotates her body counter-clockwise; creating a green whirlwind of her own that sends those surrounding her up in the air. Stopping abruptly, she thrusts her spear towards the sky, sending a beam of energy towards the twirling Senates, creating a huge explosion. Afterwards only 2 fall from the sky, the other 4 being dead.

"Damn…"

I give off a small impressed whistle, which catches her attention.

"Not bad, eh, Prince?"

She thrusts her spear in the gut of a remaining golem and hurls him on the damaged faerie, killing the former and crushing the latter.

"Better catch up, Prince! I'm in the lead by four now!"

"So you still have time to count, despite all of this? And here I was worried for a sec…"

"Aw, Prince. You _do _care! And here I thought that you were a cold-hearted demon… How sweet."

I growl at her almost mocking grin. Though I suspect that it did mean something to her.

"First of all, this fight isn't over yet."

Swinging horizontally, I slice the head of a dragon charging at me, killing him instantly. I kick the body down and swipe the blood off my blade.

"Second of all, I _am_ a cold-hearted demon!"

Smirking, I kick the groin of the corpse for emphasis. She rolls her eyes at me, but I ignore it. Stepping over the beheaded dragon, I run forward and jump over the Surt ahead of me, landing right behind him.

"Hah!"

I kick the Surt up in the air, through the roof, and high into the atmosphere. Then, jumping up after him, I glide through the air slicing him at all sides, before me final hit which results in an explosion that takes out over half his life. I drop to the ground, landing safely on my feet.

"Not bad, Prince. But looks like you didn't quite kill him."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that, my dear Etna."

She raises her eyebrow at me, though due to my dismissing comment or the name, I'm not quite sure. I look up and just in time, the Surt falls and impacts the ground, taking away whatever life he had left, killing him instantly.

"So that makes just two more to catch up, huh?"

"All I need is two more to win the bet. Then it's the most fancy, expensive place I know of!"

"You're just saying that because I'll be paying…"

"May-be…"

Che… the hell I'll be the one to loose… I've never lost a single bet and it certainly won't be to a girl!

I jump up, sending a wind cutter to hit two enemies further up. I then rush forward, giving them a blade rush to finish them off.

Just one more, and I win.

I decide to quickly take a look around to see how many more senate are left.

Looks like there's only 4 more to go. Jeez, with all these upgrades in stats, it hardly seems fair. Heh, heh. They haven't even had the chance to attack once. And here I thought I would be fighting for my life.

"Hm, almost seems _too_ easy."

"I can fix that for you!"

My eyes dart up to see a shinobi fall from the sky, landing right behind a dragon. Etna spins around after stabbing a faerie and killing it, to see him through the dragon at the golem next to her. Then the strangest thing happens. The dragon gets absorbed into the golem, boosting its power to a whole new level.

"What the-?"

Before I can even finish my thought, the shinobi appears next to a faeire and tosses it at the powered golem, making it even stronger than before.

"What just happened?"

The shinobi smirks at me, bowing in a mocking manner.

"I granted your wish. It was too easy before right? Well I hope that's enough for you, Prince."

With those words, he throws a smoke bomb down, disappearing in it.

I'll never understand how they do those things…

Looking at the powered up senate, I mentally curse myself for wishing it would be harder. Etna, on the other hand, looks bewildered at the sight of our new formidable enemy.

"Greeeat… This'll be fun."

"Hm, well there you have it, Etna. He's our last target, the remaining enemy. Whoever takes him down wins the battle and the bet."

"Eh, let's get to it then."

Though I wonder… just who the hell was that ninja? And who exactly sent him?

- Etna -

Jumping at the golem, I stab him going downward, which barely does any damage. He in turn, grabs my spear and swings it to the right, sending it and me flying into the wall.

"Ouch… he's not bad…."

Laharl then gives it a shot, charging up his Overlord's Wrath and sending it to collide with the golem in a sphere of energy. However, the golem rather unscathed jumps and the Prince and grabs him tightly by the shoulders.

"No! Prince, you have to escape!"

My words are too late, however as the golem jumps with Laharl into the air and pile drives him into the floor with tremendous force. I quickly rush over to the Prince, to see if he's okay. The golem however, blocks my way and peers at me. I lunge for him with my spear, but he grabs it and slams me into the ground.

"Heh, heh. Is that all you have little one?"

Growling, I thrust at him which he jumps over and then slams right into me. Being barely able to move, I glare at him from the floor.

"Leave the Prince alone!"

"That fool deserves what he got. The arrogance of royalty, thinking that he's above everyone else. Tell me kid, just who are you? Why is it that you want to become his vassal? Or did he force this upon you?"

I narrow my eyes at the golem.

"My name is Etna and I chose this of my own free will. The Prince doesn't think he's above everyone else either. He's just a little conceited from time to time."

"Hm, I'll say. The nerve of him to say that he doesn't have to bribe us. Though I must admit, he did better than I expected. Tell you what, child. If you give me that spear of yours, then I'll spare his spoiled highness. It looks like it's worth a bundle."

My hands tighten around the spear defensively.

"What? I can't do that! This isn't even mine!"

It belongs to King Krichevskoy… Giving it away, even to spare his son's life, would betray his trust. I'm certain that he gave it to Laharl, who then gave it to be. He entrusted me with this to ensure that I would survive.

"Well if that's the way it is…"

He then lifts the Prince up getting ready for another attack.

"No, wait! Please… isn't there something else than I can bribe you with?"

Letting the Prince, slope down to the floor, he rubs his chin.

"What else do you have?"

I quickly search myself for anything I have of value. My heart stops as I come across the ruby pendant I have.

I've had it for as long as I can remember. Maderas said it was already on me when he first came across Aramis and me, which makes it pretty old. This is my only clue to my past. For all I know it could've belonged to my mother.

I let out sigh of defeat as sadness flow through me. Knowing what I have to do, I take off the pendant and hold it in front of him.

This is for Laharl's sake… as well as my own.

"This pendant has been with me for thousands of years. It's probably really valuable, but that doesn't matter to me. It's already valuable in terms that can't be measured with Hell. I offer this to you in exchange for the Prince's life. Please take it."

I hear some coughing and see the Prince struggling to stand up.

"Don't do it, Etna! It's not worth it. You don't have to become my vassal!"

My eyes fall downward and I clench the hand at my side.

"Maybe not Prince, but you are worth it. I can't have you dying, knowing that I could've done something. You're the first friend I've had and I'm not about to let that be taken away from me!"

I turn to the golem, looking him straight in the eyes.

"So? Is it a deal or not?"

He sneers at me, before grabbing the pendant and looking it over.

"I guess I could use it for a paperweight or something… You have deal, child. I, Ethos the Golem, accept your bribe. The Prince is allowed to live and as a result you are now his vassal."

Chuckling, he walks over to the portal, the battle having finally ended. Before he teleports, he turns around and smirks.

"Congratulations."

He then disappears, leaving me feeling rather bitter and depressed at the turn of events. I could hear the sarcasm in his voice, which would anger me, were I not feeling rather down in the dumps.

"There went my only chance of finding out about my family. I guess… it's probably for the best."

Laharl, struggling to even stand, begins walking over towards me before falling down. I rush to his side and sling his arm around my neck, helping him stay on his feet.

"You know, Etna..."

He coughs slightly and I see his eyes are beginning to loose focus. He's probably doing his best to stay conscious after that last attack.

"We're really going to have to work on your obedience to my orders. Next time I say something, just trust that it's for the best."

I keep silent, not certain if I should be angry that he didn't even realize the danger he was in or the sacrifice that I made.

"In any case, looks like you won the bet, so I'll be taking you out to dinner. Right now though, I need to get to the Netherworld hospital."

Feeling a wave of bitterness overtake me, it's all I can do not to just drop him right there.

"Yes, Prince."

And with those words, I begin talking towards the portal, stepping over the mutilated corpses.

- Laharl -

Damn it all, Etna. Why'd you have to go and do something stupid like that? If that pendant meant so damn much to you, you should have just let him destroy me. After all, you did all you could, so there would be no reason to feel guilty about it. But no… instead you sacrificed something that meant the world to you for someone not even worth it.

I look at the bitter expression on her face, as we begin walking towards the cages.

"Hey, Etna."

She turns her head to look at me with eyes so unlike her. They are no longer filled with simple joys and childlike attitude. Instead, they reflect her dark mood, appearing harsh and unforgiving.

"Yeah?"

"I know you may hate me for what I've cost you. There's absolutely nothing I can think of to make this better at all. The only I can say is that your sacrifice won't be in vain. I'm going to make this up to you one way or another. What you've done means a lot to me. I just want you to know that. I truly appreciate what it was you've done."

Her expression then softens and she lets out a small smile.

"That's just what I wanted to hear, Prince."

She wraps her arms around me and buries her face in my shoulder.

"I'm so glad that you're okay."

Putting one arm on her head and the other around her waist, I pull her closer.

"Mark my words, Etna. I will make this up to you. Just you wait and see."

And you can mark my words, Ethos, when I find you it'll be hell on the Netherworld. You'll find out that there are _much _worse things than simple death and torture. You took away something very precious from my vassal and you'll pay for it with your very existence. Just you wait and see.

---

A/N: Sweet freaking, Jebus! I've updated! Only took me… how many months... (sighs) There's no excuse I can offer to you guys for this. I've been lazy, having computer trouble, lost my inspiration, and been busy try to live some of my life. They're not good reasons, but I owe you guys the truth. I'm just very thankful that somehow there were some of you that didn't give up on me. Hell, some of you even posted multiple reviews, which motivated me all the more. It took all of your reviews to keep smacking myself, telling me to keep on writing. Seriously. Once again, thank you for what you've done.

Now, the reason this chapter is so long is because I _seriously_ wanted to finish up the Dark Assembly. I mean it's been talked about for so long now in the past chapters about becoming a full fledged vassal, that it was starting to annoy me that I haven't even started it yet. Well, now its started and finished. It's about twice the length of an average chapter. Alright!

Despite all this, I'm not too certain about this chapter. There were some parts that seemed a bit off, so I did re-read this and made corrections to make reading this as smooth as possible. Any corrections or suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Also, if you have any complaints, like say about how much time this took, I'll accept those too. After all, I deserve them. Heh, heh…

In any case, stay tuned for the next installment of Forgotten Memories! Chapter 8: No Time for the Date! Look forward to it! Much sooner than 3 months too! (grins)


	9. No Time for the Date

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

---

**Chapter 9: No Time for the Date**

**Laharl **

I sit down on the top of my wooden coffin and contemplate the recent turn of events.

So many things have happened thus far. Etna has now officially become my vassal while giving up something precious in order to do so, a new enemy has revealed his or her self, and the one I find most disturbing of all…

I have a _date_ with Etna after sunset! And that's less than 5 hours away.

After the deal with the Assembly had been said and done, Etna helped me walk back to the hospital. Thankfully the ronin that had been assigned there finally came back and she was able to treat my wounds properly.

Now that I'm back to one-hundred percent, I think it's about time that I head out.

I sit up and put the Cosmic Sword in the sheath on my back.

Looks like I'll be needing this for a little while longer. I still need to get back Etna's pendant. Question is how the hell I'm going to beat Ethos…

I narrow my eyes and clench my hands together at the mere thought of that bastard.

He's strong. Too strong. Even with the boost of the Cosmic Blade, I still wasn't strong enough to overcome the strength of his fusion boost. I need more than the strength offered by weapons. What I need… is…

I grin and clench my fists with a gleam in my eyes.

"Absolute power."

A knock on the stonewall interrupts my thoughts. I turn around and find Etna with her hands behind her back and an innocent grin on her face.

I roll my eyes at the display.

Innocent my butt.

Smirking, I walk till I'm right in front of her and cross my arms over my chest.

"And what exactly do you want now?"

She feigns a hurt look and puts her right hand over her chest.

"What do I want? Such cruel words, Prince… I just wanted to talk to you about our upcoming appointment. That is, if you haven't forgotten. After all, this will be our first night out as vassal and mentor. This is the special event we've been waiting to celebrate."

I lean against the wall indifferently, still keeping eye contact with her.

"You mean a free meal right? I still can't believe you're making me go to a high class place… Sure I have the money but I'd rather spend on something more important than _this_."

I lean my head backwards and stare at the ceiling for some time before I notice the lack of response on her half. Turning back I see Etna with her face downcast and a look of sorrow in her eyes.

The hell? Did I say something wrong? Already? God damn it! Why do things always have to be so complicated with females? Why can't they just punch the guys in the jaw and be done with it?

"Hey Etna. You know I was just joking right?"

She still refuses to say anything and this time she turns her back on me.

"I think I'll go now… You obviously don't want me here."

I widen my eyes at her words and reach out to her. Resting my right hand on her shoulder, I take a deep breath, hoping to find the right words to fix this situation.

"Etna, you have to understand that I have a lot of things on my mind. I'm sorry… if you took offense to my attitude towards this date. I was just trying to lighten the mood, but it seems I made things worse. What do you say? Will you forgive me?"

Her shoulders start shaking and I start to fear that I actually made her cry. That is until she turns around with a huge smile on her face, laughing like crazy.

"Oh my god! Prince… You're _too_ easy! Did you really think I was that torn up about it? You're too sweet! And here I thought you were a cold and heartless demon…"

I feel my face turn red with both humiliation and anger.

"Of course I'm a cold and heartless demon! I just didn't want to deal with that crap about your emotions. Who does? Do you think I really care about things like that?"

The smile on her face fades away and she looks at me with seriousness in her eyes.

"One of these days Prince, you're going to have to realize that you can't rule the Netherworld on strength alone. Until that day you'll never win the respect of your vassals, including myself. Overlords need the kindness to help, the mercy to spare, and the heart to make the right decisions. If not then you'll just be overthrown. Remember that…"

She then walks off and disappears into the corridors leaving me to reflect on her words.

"The hell? What was that about?"

I sigh and slump against the wall with a hand over my face.

"I can't take much more of this… Angry or happy? Sad or serious? I wish she'd make up her damn mind…"

Whatever, I only have a few hours to train so I better make the most of it. I'll show you what kind of Overlord I am, Etna. Just watch me.

**Etna **

I reach the throne room and slouch down on the back of the throne with my arms around my knees.

"I wonder what caused me to go off on him like that? I guess I should've expected his reaction… after all he _is_ a demon. But even so, I can't help but feel angry about it."

I frown and stare at the carpeted ground.

"Why am I getting so emotional about this? Did I expect something different? Did I expect him to act like the king?"

I quickly hush myself as I hear Laharl walk by the throne room and to the commerce room. I watch him with silent eyes until he finally was out of my sight range. Finally noting that he was gone, I sigh and bury my face into my arms.

"Laharl… You're such an idiot…"

There's a brief moment of silence before it is interrupted by someone.

"While that may be true, I wish you'd be more understanding for his sake."

My heart stops for a moment due to the shock, as I wasn't expecting anyone to be even near me.

"After all… he is my son."

I turn around quickly to find one of the people I dislike with a passion.

"Your majesty… how do you do?"

It's the queen… Laharl's mom, Krichevskoy's wife, and the person who took the affections of the king from me, leaving me alone.

I bow down, despite my hidden anger, due to the fact that regardless of how I feel, she is still royalty and the wife of the strongest demon Overlord in the Netherworld. Also, I couldn't take it if the king were to be angry or disappointed at me.

She gives me a small smile and crouches so that she's at eye level with me.

"I'm doing fine, Etna. But please, there's no need for such formalities."

She got up and motioned for me to do the same.

Slightly muttering under my breath, I get up hoping that she would just leave me alone. This is something I do not need right now.

"I do believe this is the first time we've met, Etna. Even so I have heard a lot about you."

"Is that so?"

I cross my arms and sit down on the floor, using the back of the throne as something to lean against.

Who in world would possibly talk about someone like me up there in the royal hierarchy?

"Yes. The king speaks quite fondly of you."

My eyes widen and I look her in the eyes to search for any possibility of her lying. However all I see is that impossible kindness, the one that would never cease to astound me, no matter how badly I hated her.

I guess it could be said that I hold a certain level of respect for her because of that. It's not easy to maintain such ideals in a world as ugly as the Netherworld.

"King… Krichevskoy? He really talks about me?"

For a brief moment, I forget about my personal feelings toward this woman. All I want to know about is if the king really hadn't forgotten me and that he really did care.

She gives a kind-hearted smile and sits down on the floor next to me.

"Etna… the king told me about he found you as a little girl. He said of all that he had witnessed in his reign over the Netherworld, there never a more heart-wrenching scene."

I give a small smile at the thought of the king saying that. I only wish I could've heard the king himself say that. But… if that's the case, then why did he leave me alone?

"He said the time he spent with you was the most meaningful he had experienced in quite a while. He really did enjoy helping you out and watching you grow.

I remain silent, still focused on the thought of why he left.

"You know… despite what you might think, the king didn't abandon you."

My eyes widen at her comment.

How does she know what I was thinking! Wait, the queen is a witch... Is it possible she read my mind?

I feel myself grow over protective of my thoughts and what I should even think. If she does realize how I feel towards her, there's no telling what she may do.

She gives a smile before chuckling into her fist, almost politely so.

"Don't worry, I can't read your mind or anything crazy like that. I may be a witch, but I only specialize with healing and casting spells."

Slightly relived, I decide to prod a bit further.

"Then how did you know what I was thinking?"

She smiles and looks me in the eyes.

"Why, it's in your eyes of course. It's the distant look of waiting for your loved one to return."

I take step back; shocked that she would say something like that.

What does this mean? She knows how I feel about the king?

I'm about to consider making a run for it, before she gives another smile. Another one of those damned smiles. Those ones that say everything will be all right. I'm so sick of it! It's as if she knows everything!

"Don't worry, Etna. I'm not upset or anything like that."

She pauses, looking at the wall before turning back to me.

"It's understandable that you would feel that way to someone who had saved your life. As of such he's someone you can rely on, something you've never had before. He's a kind, yet powerful demon, something equally as rare, here in the Netherworld. But the way I see it, what you really feel is admiration. I think if you looked in your heart of hearts, you would find it to be true."

I quickly stand up and turn around, clenching my fists.

Is it really like she said? Are my feelings for the king nothing more than that of a little girl looking for protection? Am I really that weak?

My eyes harden into a glare and spin around, facing the queen.

"I don't care what you say! I know what I feel for the king! It doesn't matter if he's married or not! The point is I love him! And there's nothing you can do or say to change that fact…"

She offers one last smile before getting up and turning around as well.

"Maybe Etna… but you still have to understand that you still have lots of time to grow up. To mature. Maybe then you'll see."

She then walks away, leaving me to wallow with my thoughts.

When she finally leaves, I remember the question I was supposed to ask her about.

"Damn it… I still didn't ask her why it was the king left me alone…"

**Laharl **

So Etna thinks that she's better than me, huh?

I slice diagonally, killing a zombie with the Cosmic Blade.

I'll show her! She thinks she has the right to judge me?

I then swing horizontally, beheading a charging gargoyle that was coming right at me.

She'll see just what kind of power it takes to be an Overlord. And when she does, I'm bound to win her respect and her approval once and for all!

"Even if I have to beat the entire god-damned item world to do it!"

I look around noticing that only one enemy was left.

"After all, that's why I'm here in the first place…"

I could just easily walk to the next portal, but where's the fun in that?

Charging up an Overlord's Wrath, I fire the energy orbs at the remaining faerie, charring him to a black pile of smut.

"And that makes the 19th level completed."

As I warp to the next level, I begin contemplating how I'm going to deal with Ethos.

"I could just train until I'm stronger than him and _then_ kick his ass, but that'll take to long. I still have a date to uphold."

I pause momentarily.

"Even I didn't want to go, Etna would still beat the holy hell out of me. Hah, hah. Or she'd try at least."

Though I said those words with the sense of being carefree, the pressure of a time limit begins to overwhelm me before I finally land in the 20th level. I gaze over the vast number of enemies, before one particular aura enemies catches my attention. With renewed resolve, I grin maliciously.

"That's it… that's the answer…"

**Etna **

I walk over to the commerce room, now slightly curious where it was he went. It's been about 30 minutes and he still hasn't returned.

"Oh where, oh where did my little Prince go? Oh where, oh where can he be? His scarf is long and his height is cut short. Oh where, oh were can he be?"

I grin and chuckle at the song I parodied. It seems to be quite popular among the children songs in the human world. I'm not entirely ignorant of their ways after all.

Looking around, I try find any sign of the Prince. He's not at the weapon shop, item shop, clinic, the Dark Assembly, or anything. I walk to over Plenair and decide to try her for his location.

"Hey Plenair!"

The blue haired demon turns around, and upon noticing me, bows politely.

"Oh, hello Etna. How have you been? What's it like to be the Prince's vassal so far?"

I blink, slightly confused by the gesture, and then getting a grip on myself, bow as well.

"Um, it's okay, I guess. I mean, he can be a little frustrating at times, but at least he's not the worst mentor I could've ended up with, right?"

I give a grin, trying to lighten the mood.

Her mouth forms a line, as she seems to think deeply about what I said. Then giving a smile she nods her head slightly.

"You're right. In fact, he's rather kind for a demon, just like King Krichevskoy. Albeit he can be can be a little spoiled at times."

My grin turns into a smile, as reflect on her words.

"Yeah… he's not too shabby at all. I suppose I'll just give him some time. You can't expect a demon to turn into his father so suddenly. Especially when he's the Prince."

We both remain silent for a while in agreement, before I recall just why it was that I came here.

"Oh! By the way, Plenair, you haven't happened to see the Prince around here did you? He's the reason I came here in the first place."

She gives a nod and points to the opposite end of room.

"I saw him around there about half an hour ago. You should probably try asking the shops around there. Maybe the Rosenqueen Shop would know something about it. They seem to be quite popular nowadays."

Smiling, I give her a quick word of thanks and break off into a jog to the Rosenqueen shop.

The merchant turns his eyes upward and upon spotting me, raises his hand.

"Hey there! Anything I can help you with?"

"Yeah I'm looking for the Prince. Have you seen him around here?"

The merchant raises his eyebrow at the question.

"You're looking for the Prince? What sort of business do you have with him?"

Suddenly becoming defensive and a little peeved, I shoot a question back at him.

"What's it to you? Just tell me where he is."

"Can't do that. Union rules."

Palm slapping my head, I let my hand drop down and stare at him.

"_Where_ in the union contract does it talk about withholding information about the whereabouts of the Prince?"

Pulling out a book underneath the counter, he flips it open and begins reading from it.

"Page 31, Article 4, Paragraph 3, Line 7-8: Thoroughly question those who hold interest in the location of an royal member. Under the condition that the very member in question is found dead, he or she who revealed the location shall be thoroughly ass-kicked and _then_ killed."

I sweatdrop at his reference, while wondering who could have possibly written that.

Taking up an indifferent tone, I slightly narrow my eyes at the man.

"Listen buddy, I couldn't care less what happens to whoever for doing whatever. My concern is finding out where the Prince is."

"And I told you that I can't reveal Master Laharl's location until you tell me what you intentions are with him."

Jeez, what the hell am I supposed to tell him? That I'm slightly worried that the Prince might be in danger? Can't have _that_ on my reputation… But damn it, this is getting annoying. Time to take a page out of the Prince's book.

Whipping out Longinus, I aim it down at the poor merchant's crotch. Grinning, I inquery the man for what I'm sure will be the last time.

"Tell me… what's a worse punishment. Getting beaten down for revealing information, or living the rest of your life as half a man?"

His eyes widening, the throws his arms up shaking them back and forth.

"Easy! Easy! I'll tell you where he is!"

Slightly lowering the spear, I let the merchant get back down from standing on the tip of his toes.

"Good."

"The last I saw him, he was by the Item World Portal. I dunno what he was doing there and I don't really care. Just don't tell anyone that I gave you this information!"

Rolling my eyes, I flip Longinus around and put him back into the sheath. Waving off his comment, I turn away and begin walking.

"Yeah, yeah… whatever you say."

As soon as I was out of his earshot, I hear him mumble something under his breath. I squint my eyes and concentrate on his words.

"Stupid bitch, I better not end up in the dungeon because of you."

I narrow my eyes at his words and spin around 180 degrees. As I do so, his eyes widen and I immediately throw Longinus like the spear it is, embedding it in the wall less than 2 inches below his crotch. I walk over and grab him by the collar and pull him closer, with a sneer on my face.

"Next time I hear a comment like that, I won't purposely aim a little bit lower! Now get down on the ground and beg for forgiveness!"

The merchant stares disbelievingly at me, a young demon girl, who was now telling him to beg.

"You can't be serious…"

Such a thing would be unforgivable and would make him the laughing stock of the entire castle. And yet, I'm sure he could tell that the consequences would be much more worse than being mocked and ridiculed.

I watched with a smirk on my face as he slowly got to the ground on his knees and bowed to me.

"Please forgive me…"

Thinking I might as well take advantage of this; I decide to add another line to his utter humiliation

"Hm, you know what? Call me Queen!"

His eyes widen yet again, and I briefly wondered with some morbid curiosity if his eyeballs would fall out of his head one day.

"But to do that would be blasphemy to the real Queen herself!"

Already annoyed with his lack of respect and now the mentioning of the Queen, I snarl and glare him in the eyes.

"Do it! Or else…"

Swallowing his pride and doing his best to ignore the gathering crowd, he mutters underneath his breath, hoping to just get this over with.

"Please forgive me… My Queen."

Etna pulled out Longinus from the wall and grinned with a smug look on her face.

"That's more like it."

Longinus moved his eyes towards me as I gloated in victory.

"You know mistress Etna, I think you're becoming more and more like Laharl each day…"

I smirk and glance at the spear, taking my eyes off of the pathetic display of a merchant right in front of me.

"Really now? That's good to know!"

If Longinus could have, I'm sure he would have shaken his head in disagreement.

"I never said that was a good thing…"

**Laharl **

I finally accomplished what it was I needed to. Now all I have to do is head to the Hospital, heal up, get back the pendant, and be in time for my date with Etna at sundown.

Hah, hah. No problem… Though I must admit it still sounds weird that I have a date with Etna. I don't even know what she means to me. All I know for certain is that the mere thought of her throws me completely out of whack. I wonder if that's a good thing or not.

Walking over to the hospital, I immediately stop in my tracks at the sight that lies before me.

"Well if it isn't the young Prince… isn't it past your bedtime?"

With my eyes peering at the Golem that stood before me, I snarl a greeting laced with malicious and contempt.

"Hello, Ethos… I believe you have something that belongs to one of my vassals. I've come to collect your due, with interest."

I pull out the Cosmic Blade and slide into my attacking stance.

The hell with the hospital! I'll get this crap over with right now!

I briefly wonder if this is such a good idea, since I did sustain some damage in the 30 odd levels of my Dark Pendant. However, my anger once again clouds my judgment and my eyes flash a dark crimson.

"Prepare yourself!"

Ethos apparently still confident from my defeat of our last battle, smirks and cracks his giant knuckles. He points to the cages with a smirk on his face.

"What do you say? Let's go back to the room, you experienced your utter humiliation in. I think two in a row would be a good record."

I narrow my eyes and walk into one of the cages, as he gets into the other one. Once we reach the top, I storm past the secretary and into the empty Assmebly room.

Ethos shuts the door and crosses his arms across his massive chest.

"Looks like you haven't learned quite yet, eh your spoiled highness? Just because you're royalty I won't go easy on you. You _know_ the Netherworld doesn't work like that."

"Hah! Nothing will be more satisfying than when your blood coats my entire body as I watch you writhe on the this very floor like the worm you ARE!"

With those words, I charge at Ethos with speed the far surpassed my previous powers, catching him off guard with my Blade Rush. Though he manages to jump back at the last possible moment and avoided being sliced down the middle, he still sustained some damage. No letting up, I continue slicing in a frenzy, managing to land some hits every now and then.

Despite this though, it seems that he hasn't lost of a lot of health. If this battle lasts too long, I'll hit my limit way before he does.

Ethos jumps back again, this time avoid an attack that would've sliced open his stomach.

"Looks like the little Prince has been training a bit. Not bad, you've managed to improve this much in such a little time. Unfortunately you're nowhere near my level yet! You'll never be able to defeat me."

"Hah! There's only one person I've never been able to defeat and you certainly aren't him! Compared to that man, you're nothing!"

As I say those words, Ethos raises his fists and smirks, infuriating me even more.

"And yet you can't even defeat me! So what does that make? You're less than nothing and you know it!"

"Well see who's the nothing after I finish hanging your head hanging on my mantel!"

However, as much as being compared to my own father annoys me to no end… That's _nothing_ compared to the suffering that Etna has experienced! He will DIE!

Letting loose a demonic growl, I rush at him with the Cosmic Blade raised above my head.

**Etna **

"So, let me see if I got this straight…"

Turning to Sophia, the woman in charge of the Item World, I put my finger to my chin.

"You mean to say that the Prince went into a Royal Ring's Item World by himself, made it all the way up to level 30, and came out with barely a scratch on him?"

She nods with a little smile on her face.

"That's right. Master Laharl is becoming quite strong indeed. The only sign that he had gone through all those levels by himself would have to have been the fact that he could barely stand up. He must have pushed himself to the limit in there. I couldn't have done anything to stop him, regardless of his intentions. He told me he was doing this because of her. And not for any stupid reasons either."

She pauses and scrunches up her eyebrows.

"Come to think of it, he has been acting slightly different lately. He seems less like a child, though he's only a few thousand years old. I wonder who's that girl he's talking about."

I've been around Laharl almost an entire week now, and I haven't once seen any girl that he ever associated himself with. In fact, the only person he has even been around for more than 5 minutes would have to be…

"Me…"

Sophia looked up at me with a puzzled expression on her face.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?"

"Uh, no… so tell me, do you know where the Prince went to after that?"

She put her finger to her chin and thought for a while.

"Oh yeah! After that he met up with one of the senates from the Dark Assembly. I'm too sure who he was, but I do remember that he is a Golem. After a few words were exchanged they both headed off somewhere. I hope nothing bad is going to happen…"

After hearing that Laharl had met up with a Golem senator, my eyes widened and my mouth dropped. There was only one possible being it could have been that Laharl would have anything to do with.

Reaching out to her, I grab her by the shoulders and reach eye level with her.

"Where did he go! Tell me! I don't care if you're not allowed to or not! This is an emergency!"

After a moment of gaining her bearings, she shakily points to the cages.

"They both went up there together…"

Not even bothering to thank her, I rush to one the cages and jump inside and turn to Plenair.

"Take me to the Assembly room now! I need to reach Laharl as soon as possible!"

She nods and pulls a lever, allowing the cage to move slowly upward.

"Um, Etna? Is the Prince in any danger?"

I grab the bars of the cage and look down at her as I'm being raised.

"I hope not, Plenair. I really hope not…"

With only the sound of metal chains clinking, I only have one thought on my mind.

Please be safe Prince. Please don't do anything stupid...

**Laharl **

Jumping backwards again, I give an insidious grin.

"How is it, Ethos? What does it feel like to be helpless?"

Visibly struggling to move, he clenches his fist as electric shocks travel down his body.

"You damn brat! Just what the hell did you do to me?"

I walk up to him and slice him across the chest, damaging him even more and earning another scream from him.

"I came across something quite interesting in the item world. Have you ever heard of specialists? They're wonderful little creatures that add a special effect to your weapon. This little guy is called a Witch Doctor. And do you know what he does?"

Not bothering to wait for an answer, I spin around and give him a kick to the side of his head, knocking him over.

"He makes it so that bastards like you become paralyzed! So I'll ask you again Ethos! What's it like to be helpless!"

No longer sadistically punishing him, I begin kicking him fiercely with a look of hatred on my face.

"How does it feel to be powerless? What's it like to be unable to do anything! To be at the mercy of another! Can you possibly comprehend what it was like for Etna to give up what was most precious to her? Is it still something that you can laugh about now!"

Giving him one more kick, he turns over and begins groaning in pain. I narrow my eyes and pull out my sword right above his neck.

"Creatures like you disgust me… Rot in the deepest pits of the Netherworld, you unworthy slime."

Before I can swing down the Cosmic Blade, his hand reaches out and grabs my leg. He looks up at me and grins.

"Surprised? Guess you didn't know that those effects are only temporary… Too bad."

He then tightens his grip and swings his arm, throwing me into the air.

"Shit!"

Quickly adjusting by body, I twist so that I land on the floor with my legs. After skidding back a few feet, I look up to see that Ethos was once again standing up, no longer under the influence of the paralysis.

"You stupid brat, you're going to pay dearly for that… I don't care if you are the king's son! You're going to die by hands right here and right now!"

He jumps in the air and slams both of his hands together, charging up some energy. A look of nervousness crosses my face, as I realize that it would be almost impossible to avoid this next attack. Fighting through the item world was tiring enough, but battling with a powered up senator was just pushing it.

There's no way, I'd be able to summon enough energy to roll out of the way or dodge it.

"But damn it! I can't let it end like this. I haven't beaten my old man in a fight yet, nor I haven't been able to thank mother for all she's done for me, and Etna…"

My eyes narrow in determination at the thought of that red headed demon. In less than a week, she has changed me more than I ever thought possible.

"That's right… I still need to get that pendant for her. I need to see the look in her eyes when I returned what was once lost to her. I'm going to hear her words of gratitude from her lips. I have to let her know how much she means to me."

Clenching my fists, I stare up at Ethos, who is almost done charging up his attack.

"Listen up, you bastard! I'm not about to let you finish me off like this! I'm going to make it through this, no matter what! And that's a promise!"

I then charge head first at the floating Golem, who launches a beam of energy right at me. Instead of wasting energy, trying to dodge left or right, I shield myself with my own two arms, letting the beam hit my straight on. Pushing through, at the expense of my two limbs, I burst through just in time to be right underneath Ethos as he's landing.

"I told you I'd get that pendant no matter what! And now's the time!"

Before the instant he touches the ground, I use all my might to kick him up in the air. Then jumping right at him, I slice him across his body. I then flip my body in midair and rebound off the wall. I repeat this process slicing him 5 times before he explodes in a flash of white light, scattering pieces of him across the abandoned assembly room.

"Hah… you should've known better than to fight against the future Overlord… That's one promise down."

As my levels rise spontaneously, I look around the room searching for Etna's precious pendant. I quickly find the pendant in midair, in the process of falling to the ground. Using whatever strength I had left, I rush up and grab it before it hits the ground, possibly shattering it. I then carefully tuck it into my pocket, for safekeeping.

"Prince!"

I spin around, and see Etna's blurred figure standing at the door.

Was… she actually worried about me?

"Prince, are you alright?"

Loosing my sense of balance, I fall to the ground face first, meeting it with a slam.

Shit… that hurt… I don't even have the energy to talk anymore.

I hear footsteps run up to me and feel a presence stand over my body.

Must be Etna… wonder what she's even doing here. I thought she was still mad at me.

Her hands reach out and gently shake my shoulders.

"Prince, please wake up. Please open your eyes…"

Trust me Etna, I want to, but I don't have the energy anymore. I think… I think I'll take a little nap.

Feeling her presence slowly fade, I begin to loose myself as darkness sweeps over my very being.

"Prince! Please stay with me… Laharl!"

That's the first time you called me by my name…

I smile inwardly at the thought.

Maybe I did earn her respect after all… and all I had to do was push myself to the limit, burn my arms, and pass out on the ground. If only it was that simple all the time. Heh. You better be there when I wake up, Etna... I don't want to have to search the entire castle again.

With that last thought, I black out leaving behind a frantic demon girl.

**Etna**

I'm not even sure what's happening around me. Right now, I'm too worried about Laharl's condition to even notice what's going on. The only thing I care about at this moment is having him living through this ordeal. What even happened after I found him is a blur.

"_Prince… for the love of god don't die…" _

_As Etna sat over the unconscious form of Laharl, shaking him with less conviction each time, a demon covered in shadows materialized behind her with a sad smirk on his face. _

"_Oh, Laharl… Etna was right. Sometimes you really can be an idiot." _

_Etna turned around to stare at the demon with some confusion in her eyes. Sighing, he walked over to two demons and crouched down to look over the fallen prince. _

_After inspecting him for a few moments, he got up and rubbed his chin. _

"_Hm, the only bad injuries he seems to have are those two burnt arms of his. That'll take some time to heal. Other than that, he seems to be more exhausted than anything else. We should take him to the Netherworld_ _Hospital as soon as possible, for him to recuperate." _

_However Etna would not budge, instead she continued to stare with helplessness in her eyes, too shocked to do anything else. The elder demon shook his head and lifted Laharl up, slinging him over his shoulders. _

"_So I'm taking it you're just going to stay here? Right now I'm going to help this foolish boy get some medical help. You coming along?" _

_Smiling to himself, he looked down at her with some compassion in his eyes. _

"_I think he would be really happy if you were by his side when he woke up." _

_Absentmindedly she nodded and slowly got up, following him out of the room. Before he passed through the door though, he looked back one more time at the remnants of the hellish battle that had taken place. The place had literally been covered in blood and guts of the now deceased senator. Sighing to himself, he grumbled as would a little child. _

"_Why must he feel the need to wreck every room he's been in? Honestly, why can't he just impale or slice them like normal demons? Is it really that fun to splatter guts all over? Someone needs to teach him to control his temper." _

_Summoning a sign that said 'Closed for cleaning' in his free hand, he walked out the room followed by Etna. He then closed the door behind them and hung the sign on the doorknob. _

"_If I keep working the vassals like this, they're going to make another union complaint and I'm going to have to deal with raises in their wages. How troublesome…" _

_Etna, partially listening to his complaints, looked up slowly comprehending who this man was. _

"_Raises their wages? Could you be the…" _

_The demon just smiled and put his finger to her lips. _

"_Shh…it'll be our little secret okay?" _

_He chuckled, guiding her into the cage and pulling the lever when he got inside as well. _

"_After all, I doubt Laharl would very much appreciate being saved by the very man he swore to succeed." _

Looking back on the memory, it seemed to make more sense. He always seemed to watch over Laharl, though he was busy with other things. However, if that was the case, then why did this have to happen?

I turn around to gaze upon the sleeping figure of the Prince, with his arms wrapped in bandages, resting on one of the hospital beds.

"His condition has stabilized now. All he needs to do now is rest until he's recovered his energy. You don't have to stick around, you know."

I don't bother looking up, knowing full well it was one of the nurses assigned to this hospital.

They probably don't even care about his condition. Only reason they'd help him is because he's the king's son. I suppose that's to be expected from demons, but for some reason it somewhat depresses me. However not so much, as pisses me off. Those cowards…

Seeing that I wasn't going to move, the nurse gave up and walked away. When her footsteps were no longer audible, I bury my face on the Prince's chest with tears running down my face.

"Why did you have to go fight against some powered up senator? Why! Was it because of that stupid argument we had? Why the hell would you put your life in danger like that! Laharl! You're… You're such an idiot!"

"Hey!"

I blink away the tears forming in my eyes and look up to see a pair of red eyes staring at me.

"Is that any way to be talking about someone who risked their life for you? And you said _my _manors were lacking…"

Not even bothering to fix my appearance, I wrap my arms around his body tightly, while minding not to touch his arms.

"Laharl! You're okay! You're really okay!"

His arms wrap around me and gently pat my back.

"Of course I'm okay! I'm the future Overlord for crying out loud! I'm not going to loose to some wannabe demi-god. Seriously, Etna… You worry way too much."

Hearing those words, I reach back and slap him, angered that he was so careless with his life and now he was acting as if it were no big deal. His face contorts into a confused expression, and he puts his hand up to his cheek.

"Damn it, Laharl! I _have_ to worry about you because you won't even worry about yourself! Did you even think about what it would be like for me, if you were to die all of a sudden! Didn't you promise me that you'd make me into a killing machine? Didn't you swear that you would be by my side this entire time? What in the 7 Netherworlds made you do something so stupid? Please tell me! Because right now, I don't get it!"

He sighs in a frustrated tone and crosses his arms across his chest.

"I did it for you, you ungrateful vassal."

My eyes widen and I look to him for an explanation.

"I know that I haven't exactly been the most benevolent mentor to you and I know that you've been putting up with me for some time now."

He reaches into his pocket with some difficulty due to his burns and pulls out his hand enclosed around some object.

"So this is what I've been up to, Etna. This is the reason why I would do something so stupid, as you put it."

He then opens his hand revealing the pendant that I had almost given up all hope on. My link to the past. The thing that could help me find out just exactly who I was. The treasure that linked Arimas and myself together.

No… way… He got it. He actually got my pendant back? He did this all for me? He risked his life in order to get this back for me?

I wipe away my new tears stubbornly and give a conceited grin to the Prince.

"You… you're such an idiot, Prince."

I take the pendant from his hand and wrap it around my neck. The cool stone swings a bit before finally resting on my skin and I put my hands over it.

"Thank you…"

He rolls his eyes at me and grins.

"So tell me, Etna. Am I too late for our date? Because I'm feeling pretty famished right now."

"Hah! Sure, but you're still paying! That much hasn't changed, even if you did risk your life for me."

He shrugs and walks out of the hospital, heading to the Gate Keeper's portal to make arrangements.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. I wouldn't have it any other way…"

I smile and run after him.

Truth of the matter is I was scared. Scared that I would loose what was most important to me. And no, it wasn't this stone around my neck. No, it was him… He's the one who means the most to me right now. And I'll do everything I can to make sure he's safe. In order to that, I'll stick by his side through thick and thin. You won't get rid of me that easily, Prince.

"Remember, Prince! I want something fancy and expensive!"

He turns around and gives a smile meant for me, and only me. He shakes his head and laughs a little.

"You're such a greedy girl, Etna. Did you know that?"

"That's why I'm so cute!"

I have a feeling that thing's will turn out all right. As long as I have him, I'll be able to overcome anything. Woe be it to those who stand in our way… But all that put aside, I'm going to enjoy this free dinner of his. Heh, heh. Who knows? I might be able to tame him yet.

**End of Chapter 9 **

**A/N: **Well now! It's been… four months hasn't it? –bangs head against the keyboard– ujhrfguy gjih –stops– I really don't know what I can say about this. I lost my motivation for a bit, and once summer vacation hit, I was swept away into a pool of laziness. Since I'm now in college, I have to stick around campus a bit for my next classes, so it gave me time to finish like 10 pages of this. –grins–

I finally accomplished one of my goals, which was to retrieve that pendant of Etna's. I don't know where exactly I'm going to go with that. It's meant to be more of a sentimental thing, but I think I'll incorporate it into the storyline later on. After all, it is the link to Etna's past. Maybe for the next branch off…

Next will be the dinner date of Etna's and Laharl's, which hasn't been planned out at all. Then maybe toward the end, I'll start the 'getting back Armias' thing. For future reference, once I start to involve Maderas, the story will end sometime after that. It's my closing plot so to speak. Course, I do plan to make related stories towards this.

I've decided to post response to the reviews on the chapters it was reviewed to now. The only way you'll know though, is by checking the story or looking at my profile. Here's a big thanks to those who have reviewed recently, for they are the main reason I started again. Let that be future reference, though let us hope that it won't be needed from this point on. Of course, an even bigger thanks to those who have bothered to wait all this time, and those who put this on their story and author alerts. Makes me feel it's really appreciated… –smiles–

Once again, a huge apology to everyone. It definitely won't happen again, for I'll have lots of time in college now. For those who can remember that far back, my updates will be like those of the past. It will take weeks and not months. Here's to motivation!

Stay tuned for the next chapter in Forgotten Memories, Chapter 10: No Escape for the Brother! Look forward to it!

Response to Reviews 

Lacto3.1415: Oh, the first review! –grin– Glad this chapter was able to pull you out of a slump of boredom! I know how those can be sometimes. Non-too fun at all… Thanks for being understanding about the wait, and thank you for even saying that it was worth the wait. That would have to be the highlight of me own day. P I'll look forward to your reviews!

Xeno: –cough– Um… wow… I'll admit I was expecting some to be… disapproving of the wait, but none as passionate about it like you were. Heh, heh. Of course, if I were to be made to wait four months then I'd probably snap as well. –thumbs up– Well since you more or less, did ask, I suppose I could go into a detailed description of why it took so long. Ironically enough, half this chapter was already done 2 months ago, yet I didn't like the way it was going. There had to be some of that "dramatic passion" for lack of a better term. What I had before was mere words on a page to me. Another factor was the motivation… then again when is it not a factor? It's been about 3 years since Disgaea came out? It's a little hard sometimes to get back into the jive I once was. So I started looking at it as an actual story, instead of something based on the video game. –scratches head– Does that make sense? I then got high speed internet, so I downloaded AMV's like crazy. Still do. Probably the worst was the summer vacation, when I felt no pressure whatsoever, so I played video games all day long. Then came those last bit of reviews which sparked my determination once again. I guess that's bout it… Hope this answered what you were looking for. –grin–

Demon King Piccolo: There wasn't enough Laharl/Etna? –sweatdrop– I might have to try harder then… Then again, if it were pure them, then the whole chapter would go nowhere. –grin– I could make like a psuedo chapter that would be like a day in their life. –rubs chin– I shall think about that. Glad you like that Laharl's personality. That's probably what I spend most my time working on, unconsciously though. Heh, heh. Thanks for the last review. It was one of the few that got me back on track. Gave my motivation a spark it did. Thank a lot!

Goldamon X: Yo, it's certainly been a while huh? –sweatdrop– For a while though, I had though you'd forgotten about this story. Truthfully, I was wondering when you'd review this story. –grin– It's good to know that some of the original reviewers are still keeping track of this fanfic. I'll be starting on the new chapter this Monday, on 9/16/05. Hopefully doing it bit by bit will get this done quicker. I was thinking maybe two weeks worth of time, but I don't' know how good the quality would be. Then again I do owe it to you guys, so I'll see what I can do. –hands up– You can put the gattling gun down now… Really… Lol.


	10. No Escape for the Brother

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: The Rogue Shadow

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

---

**Chapter 10: No Escape for the Brother **

**Laharl **

This has to be the worse moment of my life… Hm, well okay there was that one time I was caught doing _that_ by my old man. I swear, if he plans on leaking that information out to a single soul then I'll be inheriting the throne a lot earlier than I planned on. That put aside, the situation I'm in now ranks up to a close second.

I stubbornly glare straight ahead, not bothering to look at the patronizing, yet cute vassal sitting before me.

Okay, I know I agreed to take her out to a restaurant, but how in the seven hells did she manage to make me treat her to, Réunion des Amoureux (Meeting of Lovers), the most expensive restaurant in the entire Netherworld? And what the hell does that name even _mean_ anyway? Do I even want to know? And what's with this candlelit dinner? Why do I feel like I'm the only one who doesn't know what's going on here!

Clenching my fists, I dig my nails into my palms. The minor pain snaps me out of my thoughts and realizing what I'm doing, I loosen my grip to take a few calming breathes.

Seriously, what is it about her that's causing me to lose my cool like this? Is it the way she mischievously grins, making me think she's up to something? Her wine red eyes staring at me as a cat would a mouse? Or is it her devil may care attitude and the fact she's not bothered by any of this in the slightest? Well it's either those, or I'm just starting to fall completely and utterly in love with her. Hm… Probably not!

"C'mon, Prince. What's with the downed look? If I didn't know better then I would think that you don't really want to be here. That's not the case is it?"

She then gives me a saddened little pout that would have me fooled completely if I didn't know her better than that. In reality, she's probably grinning like no tomorrow inside that conniving little mind of hers. A woman's mind is a dangerous thing. You never know what they're scheming. I must stay on guard… Yes, I must suspect every action and motive of this little diabolical demon that has entered my life and castle. Or could it be I'm just being paranoid?

I mentally shrug at the question and gaze at the ceiling trying to regain my thoughts once again. After a few moments of silence, I notice her crossing her arms over her chest and staring at me somewhat impatiently.

"Well? Do you want to be here or not? Because you can just go ahead and leave if you're not interested. However, you're still paying my bill whether you like it or not. Heh. But feel free to leave if you want to. So what's it gonna be?"

Hm, I know better than to answer that question. No matter what I'll say, I'm certain she'll find some way to twist it against me. If I say there's no problem then she'll probably boast about how in love I am with her and how I would let her get away with something like humiliating me. If I say she's annoying me, then she'll undoubtedly use that as leverage to the opinion that I hate her. She may not look it, but she's actually quite the devious girl… then again I guess that's why I've taken a liking to her.

"It doesn't matter what I think, Etna. I already agreed to this dinner and I'm going to see it through to the very end."

Even if it kills me. Which is plausible considering I'm loosing my mind only 5 minutes into this.

"Hm, you're actually starting to sound like a more responsible ruler already. I knew I was a good influence on you!"

Thinking over her comment and deciding best not to give a response, I indifferently stare at the prices of food courses, I've never even heard of.

Jeez, this place is a little expensive… Shit, what am I talking about? This place is _really _expensive. Oh well, I already agreed… I wonder if there's anything that's even good. Maybe I should ask Etna. She actually seems to know what the hell this language means.

"So my endearing red-headed vassal, have you found anything you like yet?"

She pauses for a brief second as if to think and then smiles at me.

"Yup! I only want the crème del la crème. After all, I deserve it don't I?"

Che, she's purposely ignoring my questions… again.

"Yeah, whatever, Etna."

"I mean after putting up with your whining and boasting for so long, I think I _deserve_ to choose whatever I want."

I ponder over her statement before answering in a somewhat confused manner.

"Whining? When did I ever do that?"

However instead of answering me, like any proper vassal would, she continues talking.

"Not to mention all the times I've been injured while fighting for your sake."

This time I raise my eyebrow at her proclamation.

"You've fought for my sake?"

"Then there are those times you practically _confessed _your love for me, even though I wasn't ready for a relationship."

"When did that one happen?"

"Really now, Prince. I've been making too many sacrifices on your account."

"Huh? Isn't that the other way around?"

"So that's why I deserve to order whatever I want!"

Rolling my eyes, I look over my shoulder, feigning boredom.

"I already said you could order whatever you want. Why must you make life so difficult for me? Surely a future Overlord, such as myself, deserves more consideration than this. I might actually die from stress before I even conquer someone else's world."

"So I really can order whatever I want? Jeez, Prince, you really are a pushover aren't you?"

Hm, I can actually feel my eye twitching and my fist clenching involuntarily. That's not a good sign… I better take some time to myself before a burst a blood vessel.

"I'm going to go wash up in the restroom. If the waiter arrives before I come back then use your judgment and order for me. If you decide to take advantage of that, then I _will_ work you into the ground with training when we get back."

Taking her smirk as a sign of confirmation, I stand up and walk toward the demon's washroom, trying to ignore the sound of giggling coming from behind me.

"If anything, Prince. I'll be the one working _you_ into the ground."

She's going to be the death of me…

**Etna **

Wow, it's way too easy to push his buttons…

Smirking to myself, I learn back in the wooden chair with my hands folded behind my head. I glance at both sides before kicking my feet on the table as well.

The hell with manners! I'm practically untouchable since I'm the Prince's vassal! Hell, even though I was just trying to annoy him, I really did earn this wonderful dinner. Speaking of which…

I raise my right arm and start snapping my fingers.

"Hey! Can I get some service in here? I've been waiting for over 10 minutes!"

One of the waiters, dressed up in a black suit, comes forth with a somewhat regal manner about him. His short blue hair and peering eyes briefly reminds me of the Prince. He gives me a smile and he pulls a notebook from his chest pocket.

"I apologize for the wait, mademoiselle."

He bows down in an apologetic manner and opens up the notebook.

"I am Leroy and I will be your waiter on this fine evening. May I take your order?"

I inwardly smile at his gesture, but I just cross my arms in front of my chest and stare at the waiter.

There's something familiar about him. His posture, his eyes, and his voice seem all too familiar. Then there's the fact that his French is accent is practically perfect. Practically no demon in the Netherworld even _knows_ about the French language, let alone uses it. But for him, it's as if he were brought up in it. I find it hard to believe that a demon with this level of culture has been unheard of.

"Hmph, well _Leroy_, you've got some nerve to make a lady, such as myself, wait so long."

He gives a small bow to me before looking back up with an apologetic smile on his face.

"I assure you, mademoiselle, it shall not happen again. I shall swear it on my life!"

I half-heartedly wave off his comment, still smiling to myself.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever."

Looking at the menu, I go by my limited knowledge of French and try to pick out something good.

Lucky for me, the king had helped me learn the French language. Granted it had only been a while, I'm grateful he took his time from his own schedule to help me learn. It's quite the seductive language… Hm, I better try it on the Prince on these days.

Giggling to myself, I look up to find Leroy still waiting for me order.

"Oh, right! I'll have the… Soupe de Courges et de Pomme (soup), a slice of your Camembert (cheese), and a glass of Bordeaux wine."

The man raises his eyebrow at my mention of wine, but decides not to say anything about it.

"And for the gentleman who was with you?"

I put my finger to my chin before grinning mischievously.

"Get him some Escargot (snail) and Pain Perdu (sweet bread made from stale bread)."

He smirks at my order for the Prince and jots down our orders without any complaint.

"As you wish, mademoiselle. I shall be back with your orders shortly."

He turns to leave but comes face to face with the Prince, who apparently finished washing up. They both stand staring at each other for what seems to be a good 2 minutes. Laharl then squints his eyes and walks closer toward the French waiter and addresses him in a suspicious tone.

"Hey… do I know you?"

The waiter with clearly some panic in his eyes turns around quickly and heads in the opposite direction.

"No, I don't believe so. Please excuse me, for I must take the orders of the other tables."

The Prince stands still, taking a moment to think, before his eyes widen and then hardens to a glare at the back of the retreating waiter.

"What a minute, you bastard! What the hell are you doing here! I thought I told you to leave me the hell alone! And you tell me that _my _manners are lacking! I'm going kill you!"

The waiter then turns around and gives a grin to me, before breaking into a dash and jumping through the swinging doors, leading to the kitchen. Before Laharl could go jumping after him though, he was stopped by a red Dragon with her arms spread out, blocking his way.

"I'm sorry, Young Master. But only employees are allowed beyond this point."

"Why you!"

He attempts to burst through the door but is then lifted up by the arms of the dragon. While thrashing about, the Prince yells his fair share of obscenities and threats to the waiter who barely escaped the Prince's wrath.

I smile to myself, tracing the edge of the empty wine glass.

"He's such a kid at times."

I stare at his back while trying to get to the kitchen, until he finally manages to calm down and walk towards our table in a defeated and irritated manner.

"Damn him… He's really becoming irritating lately. The hell does he think he is stalking me like this?"

Raising my eyebrows, I feel the need to comment on this. However the Prince saw this and before I could say anything embarrassing, he quickly changes the subject.

"So Etna, I trust you ordered for me already?"

I give him a mischievous grin and he returns it with a confused look.

"Do I even _want_ to know? Probably not…"

"So Prince! What's next after the dinner? Do we have any plans or something? Cause I've been cooped up in this castle for too long. I was thinking maybe we could to some resort or anywhere relaxing. You know, to get away from it all?"

He gives me a disbelieving look and leans closer, talking in a quiet voice.

"What, do you think I'm made out of money or something? I may be royalty but even I have my limits when it comes to spending…"

I bite my lower lip and look at him with a sad look in my eyes. I raise my voice slightly to get the attention of the other demons dinning here.

"So that's how it is, huh, Prince!"

His eyes widen and he looks around, noticing all the unwanted attention of the demons gazing at us.

"You gave me promises of a better life and made me your vassal, but it was all to get into my pants wasn't it!"

The Prince, _clearly_ not expecting this, stutters slightly embarrassed by what I was saying.

"What the hell!"

"And to think… what will I say when our child is born and starts asking for Daddy. What do I tell him then? That his Daddy was an arrogant Prince who used and discarded me for a one night stand? That's pretty cruel and irresponsible for a future Overlord!"

I look out of the corner of my eyes to see most of the female demons whispering among themselves.

"How horrible!"

"Completely irresponsible…"

"She's pregnant at that age?"

"That's pretty reckless of him…"

"Maybe having him as a successor isn't such a good idea anymore."

"Right! What can we say about the future of our Netherworld if it's the hands of someone like him?"

He spins around and glares at the tables he heard talking behind his back.

"It's a damn lie! I never even touched her!"

However instead of silencing them up, it only encouraged to gossip and rumor some more.

"And now he's denying it!"

"The future is looking pretty bleak now."

"I think we need to talk to her Majesty about this."

"Yeah, she needs to straighten that boy out."

The Prince covers his face with his hands, out of embarrassment or anger I don't know, and then drops them to glare at me.

"You're pretty damn cruel, Etna… I do _not_ need this kind of unwanted attention at all. If I agree to your stupid demands, will you tell these idiots that it was just a joke?"

"You had me for a joke? Is that it?"

Before the women had another chance to start a chain of talking and doubt for the future, Laharl stands up, pushing away his chair and looks me in the eyes.

"Damn it! Fine! I'll take you on your stupid vacation! But don't you think this is over yet…"

"Oh, Prince! You mean you will marry me? That's wonderful! I won't have to murder you in your sleep after all!"

The women, upon hearing the news I announced, seemed to quiet down, temporarily satisfied with these turn of events. Laharl however gives me an incredulous look and slinks further into his chair.

"You're really too much, Etna… You're a pathological liar, you torment me almost every half hour, you make my life a living hell, and furthermore you seem to _enjoy_ it. Jeez…"

My feelings of enthusiasm of gaining a vacation disappear at the tone of his voice. Suddenly, I can feel a tight feeling in my chest, and I find myself a little worried about where he's going with this.

I hope I didn't push him too far… I was just screwing with him… Is he starting to regret his decision to make me his vassal already? I didn't screw it up already, did I?

"But you know, Etna… I guess that's why I like you. At least it keeps things interesting… however I don't want you to pull a stunt like this ever again. The last thing I need is an uprising because of some fake, illegitimate child I had with an underage demon."

Giving a sigh of relief at his words, I settle back down and look just in time to see our order come in. I turn to the Prince, happy that he didn't want to send me away just yet.

"You know, I'm pretty sure I'm older than you are. So it would probably be you who's underage. In any case, don't worry, Prince. You have my word."

I'm just glad you didn't decide to dump me like that. I need to be more careful about pushing his buttons.

The waiter stops in front of us and I look up, noticing that this is a new waiter.

Hm, I wonder what happened to the one who served us before… I kinda liked him.

"We have some soup and Camembert for the lady, along with some Bordeaux. And for the gentleman, just as you ordered, escargot and pain perdu."

"The hell is this?"

I close my eyes and sip some of my soup, anticipating the Prince's reaction. Sure enough, it comes right in time for the smile to reach my face.

"ETNA!"

**Laharl **

I poke the snail again with one of my forks, watching the tips slowly prod the squishy little dead creature. Glancing up, I see Etna has already finished her soup and has moved on to the cheese. She notices my staring and holds up a slice of the cheese in front of me.

"You want some?"

"Now Etna… why would I possibly want some of your food when I have this _lovely_ snail along with a piece of recycled bread to possibly kill the horrible taste of the slime creature."

She rolls her eyes at me and leans forward.

"I know it seems like a joke, but there are actually some people in the world who consider it to be a delicacy."

"Yeah? Well you can delicately shove this delicacy you call food up your-"

"Alright! Alright! I get the idea… Sheesh, maybe you're just too spoiled to appreciate good food."

I give a sigh and lean back in my chair, thinking her statement rather ironic.

"You're calling _me _spoiled? In any case, don't talk to me about how good this stuff is. I know, for a fact, that you ordered this stuff with the sole intent of pissing me off. Now if you don't mind, can you finish off your cheese and glup down your wine, so we can get the hell out of here?"

She puts on a shocked expression on her face, which I suspect was fake, but it gets harder and harder to tell with her.

"What! You want to leave after paying for a place as expensive as this?"

Standing up, she puts her hands on her hips and speaks to me in a matter-of-factly tone.

"For your information, there are still plenty of things to do here."

I inwardly groan at her determination to stay in this overly charged hellhole.

"You make it sound like we're in an amusement park… What sort of things can they possibly have that I'd be interested in?"

"Well…let's see. I've heard that Réunion des Amoureux has musicians play music of their choosing every week. The customers can then pair up and dance with each other on the floor. It just so happens that tonight is that very night."

"What! What makes you think I'd be interested in that sort of stuff?"

She gives me a smirk that reminds me to keep my guard up and suspect her motives.

There's no telling what she's planning… Especially when she's wearing a smirk on her face… It almost seems as if she's imitating me.

"Well just the fact that the winner of each weekly contest gets to put their bill on the house. In other words, you get off scot-free so to speak."

Put the bill on the house? So I wouldn't have to pay for this crap? Damn it! What do I do… My options are to either dance with Etna or be forced to pay a bundle of hell for a dead snail and stale bread… Damn her… I know she's enjoying this.

"Fine."

Not quite hearing me, she snaps out of her own world and looks at me with a confused look on her face.

"Huh?"

"I said I'll take part in your stupid dance! But it's only so I don't have to pay for stuff I didn't order."

"When did I say that I would ever dance with you? Hm?"

"What! Who else do you plan on dancing with? That old pervert across the room that's been staring at you ever since we sat down here?"

"Eww… no. Look, don't you know how this works? You have to _ask_ me to dance."

I consider this for a moment before replying.

"I order you to dance with me."

"That's not the way you do it! C'mon, Prince… No one's ever asked me to dance before. Can you just go along with this for once? I just want to know what it feels like to be asked."

I consider saying something around the lines of 'I wonder why…' but the impulse fades as quickly as it is came.

Taking a deep breath, I look into her eyes and realize that she really does want to dance with me for whatever reason she has. I give a frustrated sigh and cross my arms over my chest in a defeated manner.

"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt…"

Probably my famous last words…

"Etna, would you do me the honor of dancing with me tonight?"

Wow, that actually came out about halfway sincere…

She gives me a smile that manages to convince me that she was actually happy I asked her.

"Why yes, Prince Laharl! I would love to dance with you."

I look at her with fake irritation, trying to ignore the embarrassment I'm feeling right now.

"So when does this dance thing start?"

"What's the matter? Eager to get on the dance floor?"

So it's back to this again… Two can play at that game.

"Not really. Just eager to leave this place. Why? Starting to have second thoughts?"

She gives a smirk and plops back down in her chair.

"The only thing I'm doubting is your ability to dance. But really, you should try to lighten up! Here, have a sip of my wine. It should relax you a bit."

I glance warily at the glass offered to me and slip my fingers across Etna's before taking the glass out of her hands. She doesn't say anything about it thankfully, so I take that as my queue to drink. With that, I take a small sip from the glass, ignoring all those thoughts about indirect kisses and such.

"It tastes kinda weird… I've never had wine before."

As soon as I say that, I'm overcome by a soothing sensation that washes over my body, relaxing it ever so slightly.

This feels kind of warm…

I hand the glass back to her, only this time we leave our hands on top of each others.

"Etna… I…"

Looking at her face, my words disappear and I realize that I might care for her more than I've let on… even to myself.

Before I can say anything however, I am interrupted by the sound of a microphone being plugged in and the tapping on it, to get our attention.

"Hello, and good evening! As most of you are aware of, today is our weekly dance contest at Réunion des Amoureux! For those who haven't been here before, allow me to explain the rules. Only two people are allowed to be on the dance floor at the same time, no more, no less. You can use our professional musicians to your liking and even arrive with music sheets, ready to give to them. The dance must be no more than 10 minutes long, though I am certain a lot of you can go on longer that that. And finally, remember that whoever wins, gets to have their lovely banquet on the house along with a special surprise! The contest begins in 10 minutes. Please sign in before then."

He then walks off the stage, leaving me rather confused and irritated. It's not long until I realize I'm still holding Etna's hand and that she was still waiting for me to speak.

"Um, I think it's time to go sign in…"

I awkwardly let go of her hand, ignoring the lack of heat no longer wrapped around my own, and head to the sign up sheet, located next to the main entrance.

Hm, looks like I'm the first one.

I pick up the pen and write my name in cursive and then Etna's after my own on the number 1 line.

Would that make us the very first dancers? Hm, I wonder if she'll be okay with that. Oh yeah, we're supposed to talk to the musicians ahead of time to let them know what music we want to be played. Might as well ask her. After all, it was her idea... Though I'm only doing this so I won't have to pay for something out of my own money. Yeah… I'll keep telling myself that.

Grinning at the idea of not having to pay, I head back to where Etna is and notice that she's resting her head on the top of the table, still looking at her hand. I silently sit down in front of her, waiting for her to look up, but she doesn't.

Looks like she's lost in her thoughts… I wonder what she's thinking about…

**Etna **

I wonder if Laharl plans on buying me a wedding ring when we get married… It better be a big one! Oh, with it should have gold lining and a kick ass diamond in the middle. Heh, heh. That would rock! Who knows, we might have a happily ever after yet.

I lean back into my chair from my leaning position to feel the sensation of the cold stone against my neck.

Oh yeah! My pendant… It's the only link to my past. And that of Aramis's as well.

I clasp it in my hand, as if trying to reassure myself that by doing so I can protect him.

Don't worry, little brother. I'll make sure we're reunited again. In fact, tomorrow is the day it all happens. I'll meet Sid in the cemetery and kick his ass, once and for all. That bastard will finally get what's coming to him. Then maybe I'll be able to break away from Maderas and we'll be able to live safely in the castle. Maybe… Just maybe…

I begin tracing the surface of the polished table, my thoughts now moving on to a certain blue haired demon.

Come to think of it, the Prince sure has come a long way since I've first met him. He seem more patient and willing to help me out, than before. But he really needs to take better care of himself. I mean, I didn't follow him to the Dark Assembly, he might've bleed to death! No, no… I'm sure the king would've done something about it. He always seems to be there right when he's needed. Just like that time that seems so long ago…

"Hey, Etna!"

I widen my eyes and jump up a bit, caught off guard by the sudden outburst. Glancing up, I see the Prince sitting in front of me with his arms crossed over his chest and a look of impatience in his eyes.

"I've been calling your name for the past 5 minutes now. You should try to be more aware of your surroundings. You could be attacked or something and you wouldn't even know it tell you're dead on the floor."

"Oh…"

I give him a grin and lean back on the chair, swaying my tail back and forth.

"But even if I'm caught off guard, at least I have you to protect me, right?"

He looks off to the side and leans back in his chair as well.

"You know what? I'm not going to bother answer that one… though in all honesty, it should be the vassals ready to protect their mentor. Not the other way around."

I smirk, knowing he wouldn't answer me, though his words, however vague, told me what I wanted to hear.

"So, Prince… Is there any particular reason for interrupting my daydreaming?"

He pauses to think before his eyes slightly widen in remembrance of what he wanted to say.

"Oh yeah! I already signed up for that weekly dance thing you were talking about. You're still up for it, right Etna?"

I smirk slightly at the sound of challenge in his voice.

"Hmph, of course. I'm the one who suggested it after all."

"Yeah, well they need to know ahead of time what type of dance music you want to be played when we're dancing. Like if we wanted to do the tango, waltz, swing, tap, or whatever possible style you can think up. You can choose, since I'm good with any one of them."

Leaning over the table in partial shock, I stare with at him with wide eyes.

"What? You mean you actually can dance? And here I thought I would have to teach you 5 minutes before it started!"

He gives me an indignant look before crossing his arms over his chest and starts laughing.

"Hahahaha! Of course I do! It's the future Overlord's duty to know everything about everything! Including how to dance! I believe I already told you that when I first met you."

He smirks at me and I smile wistfully, remembering when we first met.

"You haven't changed one bit, since we first met, you know that Prince."

"Heh, maybe in your opinion…. But I know for a fact that you've changed quite a bit, Etna."

"Really? Why's that? Is it because I'm even cuter and sexier than before?"

Receiving nothing more than a look and raised eyebrow, I sigh to myself.

"_Fine_, I give up. What has changed about me?"

He looks at me like it should've been the most obvious thing in the world.

"Well for one thing you're no longer the timid, scared girl I first met. You've become stronger, more well adapted to the Netherworld. More over, you've proven that I can rely on you in any situation."

I blink slowly to myself, amazed and even happy that he would say such a thing about me.

However I still don't know where he's going with this.

"So what are you trying to say, Prince?"

He folds his arms over his chest and closes his eyes.

"What I mean to say, Etna, is…"

Slowly opening his eyes, he grins at me and I feel myself smile back.

"I can fully trust you now. I have no doubts about your loyalty to me. Well, aside from that issue between myself and my old man, I mean. That'll be settled when you can give me a straight answer about it."

Did he just say what I think he said? I've finally earned his trust?

"Prince, you… really trust me?"

"Hmph… yes, I actually do. You could've left me to die after my fight with Ethos, but instead you helped me back to the Netherworld Hospital. While I was recovering, you waited for me to get better rather than take advantage of my condition. If that doesn't prove you're loyalty, then I don't know what does."

I stand up, overcome by a sudden wave of joy and hug Laharl with all my might, ignoring his sounds of protest.

"Thank you… Thank you so much for believing in me."

Any signs of struggle quickly die down and he awkwardly wraps his arms around my waist, returning my no longer unwanted hug.

"Yeah, no problem, Etna... Anytime…"

We stay in each other's arms for a few minutes, content in the presence of each other.

Who would've thought that we'd end up like this? Though I don't really mind at all. It feels kinda nice actually. I wonder if my parents hugged me when I was just a kid. It's been so long I can't even remember.

"Hey, Etna."

I blink, snapping out of my thoughts.

"Yeah, Prince?"

"How long are we going to stay like this?"

"Um, not sure."

"Think we should head to the dance floor yet?"

"Yeah, it's probably time."

We let go of each other and I instantly feel the warmth of our bodies pressed together fade away, missing the comforting feeling it gave me.

Laharl coughs, looking to the right to avoid eye contact with me.

Is he _blushing_? Heh, heh! He's probably still embarrassed about the hug. How cute…

"Um, so you never did answer my question. What kind of song do you want to dance to?"

"Oh yeah! Uh… I'm fine with anything really. Did you have something in mind?"

"Hm, I was thinking something like waltz. It's fairly simple and doesn't look half bad."

I resist the urge to roll me eyes at his reasons. Grabbing him by the shoulders, I look him in the eye, trying to be serious.

"Prince, if you want to win, you're going to need more than classic waltz. We need something_ passionate_, something with a bit a flare to it! Like tango! That would be a good one."

"Feh! Whatever… I don't care what it is, as long as I don't have to pay for snails!"

I shake my head, somewhat disappointed by his insensitivity to something like this.

"You could at least act like you care! You could pretend that you're not going to dance with me, just so you can get a free meal! It's not like I'm someone you can use to get your way!"

Realizing I was now staring at the face of a halfway stunned Prince, I silently reprimand myself for snapping like that.

It's not like it's that big of a deal, right? But why is it that I feel his reasons to dance with me should be more than this?

The Prince sighs and rubs his head, slightly aggravated.

"You're becoming more and more stressed out lately, Etna. Maybe that vacation is a good idea after all…"

That being said, he turns around and begins walking to the dance floor, leaving me behind. Just before I start to feel depressed, he turns around looking a little pissed.

"And I never said that was my only reason to dance with you! The free meal is just a benefit, alright? Besides, it's not like I need a reason to dance with you or not."

I give a small thankful smile to him, knowing that he didn't have to say that to me.

"Hmph, vassals these days… I'll dance if I damn well please! I don't need a reason to do that. And you know why? Because I'm the going to be the next Overlord! Ahahahahahaha!"

He then turns around, his scarf whipping through the air, and starts walking through the crowd, making a beeline to the musicians.

"Heh, heh. I should've known he'd say something like that… he can be quite predictable at times. Ah well, that's just who he is! And I wouldn't have him any other way…"

**Laharl **

"Hey you!"

I use my fingers snap at the musician, who seemed bored enough to gouge his eyes out for fun.

Man, these guys must have no life if all they can do is wait for their turn to play. Oh well, I guess that's what they get paid for.

Finally catching his attention around the 7th snap, he looks at me, apparently having no idea who I am.

"Yes, sir? What can I do for you?"

"My partner and I are going to be the first one dancing and we've chosen the kind of song we want played. We agreed on going for tango. Got that?"

He blinks and then jots down something on his papers.

"Alright, tango it is. Do you have a specific song you want? After all, there are plenty of tango songs. There are some famous ones such as _Dessauer Tango_ and then we have songs that have no lyrics in the whatsoever, just a good beat. So what type will it be?"

I raise my eyebrow at him, slightly confused by what he just said.

"Look, I don't care what song it is, so long as it's good, fast, and impressive enough to win this contest that's coming up."

"Not much on the refined cultural world of music, are you?"

Narrowing my eyes, I move in forward to the seemingly insignificant man.

"If you so wish, I can refine you into a pulp of blood and guts before my turn comes up and we'll be short one musician, though I'm sure we will manage. Now you listen here, if you choose a crappy song, then you're going to be sorry for screwing with me."

To emphasize my point, I grab the music stand in front of him and bend to an acute angel with my right hand, letting the papers fall down.

"Now, are we clear on this?"

The man, now clearly nervous, gulps and nods feverishly.

Heh, how pathetic. He must be quite a cowardly demon. Then again, if all he does is play music all day, I guess it wouldn't be that much of a surprise if he turned out to be a complete weakling.

"Yes, sir. Crystal."

"Good… I intend to keep my word. So for your sake, you better keep yours."

I walk back to the table Etna was sitting at for the third time that night, leaving the demon man scared out of his wits.

Hopefully this night will be over soon enough. I can't put up with much more of this.

Plopping down into the wooden chair, I look at Etna to see her grinning at me.

"Well judging by the way you sat down, I'm guessing all's well then, Prince?"

Seeing her smug as she was, I can't help but grin a little myself.

"Of course, by the time I was done talking to him, he was _begging_ me not to kill him!"

At the thought of the memory, I allowed a look of satisfaction to pass over my face.

"What? You've even threatened the musicians? Aren't you worried we'll get kicked out or something? How are we supposed to win the contest if we're not even allowed to be in the restaurant?"

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Look, it all worked out in the end, didn't it? Besides, if he tried to make us leave… Well…"

I crack my knuckles to emphasize my point, which earns me a roll of the eyes on Etna's behalf.

"You should know by now that brute strength won't work all the time, Prince."

Giving I sigh, I feign disinterest in her little reprimand, hoping that she wasn't about to burst into lecture mode. For some reason, she always seems determined when it comes to how I should act.

"I mean, there's at _least_ blackmail, Prince! Though I suppose I should expect it from your typically male brain. It's all fight, fight and kill, kill with you."

Slightly surprised by her train of thought, I give a wry smile and lean, interrupting her little rant.

"While this is all very interesting, my endearing vassal, I think you should know that it's time to begin the dance."

As if on cue, the announcer guy, whose name I never bothered to learn, taps the microphone and clears his throat.

"Alright ladies and demons! It's time for the contest to begin! Will all contestants and their partners come forth and get ready for the dance off! That is all I have to say."

I stand up to hold my hand out to Etna in a faux, chivalrous manner. She seems to understand the gesture and grins at me, taking my hand. After helping her stand up, we head to the dance floor still holding each other's hands and thinking nothing of it.

**Etna **

Is it normal to be nervous? I mean, it's just the Prince right? So it shouldn't matter if we're holding hands right now and are about to dance in front of about a hundred pair of watching eyes.

I glace at Laharl, who wears an impassive look on his face, and I turn to stare straight ahead.

Damn it, who am I kidding? This is the first time I'm going to be doing such a thing with an actual partner. The king did give me lessons, but that was over 500 years ago and when I was still young.

After a small period of silence, I look at him again to see that his face still as indifferent as ever.

Damn it, would it kill him to show some hint of emotion? It's not like it's going to bite him in the ass or anything.

Turning my head to the left, I address to Laharl in a soft voice.

"Hey, you're sure you know how to dance, right?"

He turns to me and responds in an irritated tone of voice.

"For the last time, yes! And what do you mean, am I sure? I'm probably a better dancer than you!"

He pauses and looks at the expression on my face.

"Are you nervous? I mean, I don't even see what the big deal is anyway. If you're that anxious, just take a deep breath and let it go. Who cares what they think? I sure don't."

We finally arrive on the dance floor and the Prince wraps his hand around my waist. Pulling me in, he whispers into my ear.

"Just go with the flow and follow me lead. Trust me."

I grin and turn around to face him, placing my hand on his right arm, just above his bicep.

"I know I can, Prince. And that's why we're going to win."

The announcer lifts up his microphone and sticks his left arm in the air.

"Welcome to our contest! The rules are simple. You can choose any type of dance you wish, using a song you've already discussed with one of the musicians. We have a time limit of 10 minutes and after all dances have been completed, the judges will vote and shall determine a winner. And now let me introduce our first contestants, Lord Laharl and his Mistress Etna!"

While the customers and even employees clap and cheer for us, I see Laharl blink in confusion and then narrow his eyes at the announcer.

"The hell? I never wrote down those our names like that! That punk is going to get a fist in his face if he doesn't clear that up by the end of the dance."

Though slightly miffed at the title given to me, I grab Laharl's left hand with my right and give a small smile.

"Don't worry about it, Prince. Let's just try to concentrate on the dance, hm?"

He gives me a smirk and visibly relaxes, now focusing on me and the music that had begun playing.

"Hm, that's the best idea I've heard all night."

With that said, Laharl then begins moving forward with his left foot first and I move backward starting with my right. Following the timing of slow, slow, quick, quick, slow, I allow myself to get lost in the music and the air surrounding me and the Prince. As the music progresses, we move to the beat, turning and marching whenever an opportunity is presented.

Wow, he's not so bad for a lead after all. I think I could get used to this.

And so we continued dancing, often deviating from the original steps of the dance. After all, tango is meant to have improvising in there. That was one of the things the King taught me before. As we dance, I can feel myself connecting with him now. It's as if we're not dancing as one. The closeness, the twists, and twirls. All of these only proceed to help me lose myself, as the minutes wear on in the hot spotlight.

As the dance finally comes to an end, the Prince dips me in the final beat with our bodies pressing together and him leaning over me. After a brief pause of us staring into each others eyes, he then continues to bend downward until his lips finally rest across my own. Giving me what would be my very first kiss.

Holy shit! He's kissing me!

After I seemed to have gotten that fact out of the way, I relax into the kiss and then further deepen it by wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling tighter. He finally breaks it off and we stare into each other's eyes, not needing to say any words. Not a second after that though, we both snap back to reality as we hear applause, woots, and whistles at our display.

Laharl then pulls backward, allowing me to get back up on my own two feet. After I got back my sense of balance from the kiss, I then grin and proceed to wave at everyone who was cheering. I look at the Prince, whose face was reddening, probably just now comprehending what happened at how many people witnessed it.

Heh, heh. It was a good night after all. Although it's weird, all of the sudden I don't even care if we're going to win or not. Sure first place would have given me an all-expenses paid trip to the Sea of Gehenna, but…

I wrap my arm around the Prince's and rest my head on his shoulder, content with where we were.

I think I got the best prize of all…

**Laharl **

Shit, I can't believe I just did that in front of everyone… Though, I can't say it wasn't worth it. Heh. I wonder if she thought I was a good kisser…

I blink then forcibly shove those thoughts in the back of my head.

Of course, I was a good kisser! After all, it's my job as future Overlord to be the best at everything! And that includes kissing! Ahahahahahaha! Though, we should probably clear the dance floor now. After all, the contest isn't over yet, though after our dance it might as well be. Heh, heh!

I lead Etna back to the chairs as we sit down to watch the other contestants dance. We lean against each other with our arms wrapped around the other's body. An up beat tempo then starts playing, as the next two dancers proceed to go on with the contest.

Hm? They're playing pop? Hah! Those fools are going to need more than that after the performance Etna and I gave them.

We continue to watch each performance given, as both Etna and I come to the same conclusion that while it looked alright, it was nothing compared to our own dance.

I think tonight shall be definitely be a night to remember… Unless of course, someone were to wipe out all of our memories, but then again what are the chances of that?

Eventually the other 5 pairs finish dancing, having gone through some interesting varieties of music, and after the final round of applause, the announcer stands up for the last time.

"Thank you, Greg and Patricia for that lovely waltz! Now, is the moment you've all been waiting for! The announcement of the winners of tonight's contest! Judges?"

The judge in the center, an archer, stands up and gives a warm smile to the crowd.

"We are pleased to announce that the winners are none other than the very first contestants, Laharl and Etna! We've all agreed that they've displayed an amount of fire and passion not seen for the longest time. While all other dances were perhaps better coordinated, they lacked the emotion, the _feeling_, that would truly make a dance great! As of such was demonstrated perfectly and the end of their dance."

She gives a small smile and nod to us, before going back to the announcement.

"So for the 1st prize, they shall get an all-expense paid trip to the Sea of Gehenna and their bill for tonight shall be paid off by Réunion des Amoureux! Congratulations you two!"

Etna and I stand up and walk over to receive our tickets to the tip I just now heard of. Waving my ticket in front of her face, I raise my eyebrow at her.

"I'm guessing this was perhaps your hidden motive in all of this?"

She then grins and flicks my forehead in a playful manner.

"No, you idiot. I really did want you to ask me to dance. This was, how you put it, a benefit of winning?"

Despite my slight irritancy at being flicked, I crack a small smile that I try my best to keep hidden.

"Che… and my bonus for winning is not having to pay for that snail you called a platter. Though I can't say it was such a bad night…"

"Of course not, after all I did receive a kiss from the successor to the Overlord of the Netherworld. After all, how many other girls can say that?"

This time it was my turn to grin, deciding not to answer her question. After thanking the archer who was still smiling at me, I turned to walk out of the restaurant; glad I didn't have to uphold any mirage of being a proper demon anymore.

"Phew, sure glad that's over with…"

Hearing footsteps sound behind me, I turn around in time to see Etna jogging up to me. With an irritated look on her face, she crosses her arms across her chest with her tail swaying back and forth.

"Hey, what's the big idea leaving me there like that?"

"Hm, it's not like I was trying to ditch you or anything… but I really can't stand being in such an 'extravagant' place. I told you before; I don't belong in those types of places… It makes me uncomfortable. I promise I didn't leave because of you."

To prove my point, I wrap my arms around her back and pull her in for another kiss. Feeling her lips break into a smile, she parts and rolls her eyes.

"Fine, I guess I can forgive you for that. Though for being a piece royalty, you sure can't handle rich, fancy places that well. Maybe you'd do better as a country boy?"

I cross my arms over my chest and smirk.

"Fat chance! There's no way, I'm giving up my title as future ruler of the Netherworld! I'm going to be the Overlord even if I have to destroy half of the Netherworld if it stands in my way."

Walking closer to me, she looks me in the eyes with a hint of mischief.

"And are there any plans for a future Queen of the Netherworld?"

Knowing what she was getting at, I grin and turn around.

"I don't know… I guess the only way you'll find out is by following me around, huh?"

She walks up to my side and links her arm with mine.

"Maybe, but I won't wait forever for an answer though. Heh, heh."

"That's fine… I don't think it'll be too hard to choose a fitting companion as ruler of the Netherworld. I already have someone in mind after all."

After beckoning the Dimensional Gatekeeper, we step through the portal and arrive in the castle where we part ways in the hallway.

**Etna **

Wow, what a night… hard to believe it's all coming to an end. Still, it's best that I get some time to myself now. I'm supposed to meet that bastard Sid in the Stellar Graveyard at midnight, and I don't want the Prince to get involved.

Grinning, I wave goodnight to Laharl, who was standing a feet behind me.

"Well, Prince I'm heading back to my room. You may have kissed me, but that doesn't mean you're getting me to sleep with you just yet."

Getting the hidden meaning to my words, the Prince blushes slightly, getting really flustered at the thought of it.

"W-what! You idiot! I'm not some perverted demon, you know. I'll have you know that I have dignity and high reverence for a reason. Just because we kissed doesn't mean I'm trying to get you laid."

Laughing to myself, I turn around a give a last wave goodbye.

"Sure, sure. Whatever you say, Prince."

I then break off into a mild jog, rushing to the vassal's quarters in my room.

"Wow, it's been a while since I've slept here. Tonight's no exception though…"

Grabbing some healing items and pulling out my trusted gun, I tuck them into my pocket and pull out Longinus from behind by back.

"Hey… I'm going to need your strength one more time. I hope you don't mind having to work with me again."

At my words, Longinus smiles as if I were making a big deal about it.

"The king entrusted me to you, Etna. I've deemed you a strong and dedicated spear user. You're welcome anytime you want to use my power. Though I don't know what you're getting ready to do, I trust your intentions."

I smile at its words and tuck Longinus away as well; ready to face the day I've been waiting for, ever since a week ago.

"Thanks Longinus, I won't let you down. I'm going to save my brother once and for all! That bastard Sid won't know what hit him. After that, maybe I can pick up where I left off with the Prince. Heh. I guess we'll find out, won't we…"

Clutching my pendant around my neck, I head out of my room and after 2 minutes of walking, approach the Dimensional Gatekeeper, waving to her.

"Hey, Sophie!"

"Etna! You plan on going out again? Where to this time?"

"Oh, the Stellar Graveyard… I need to meet an old friend of mine."

She gives me a skeptical look and runs her hand through her long blond hair.

"That's a pretty dangerous place if you're under leveled. Not that I don't believe you, but the monsters there are pretty high for someone who just got introduced to fighting about a week ago. Are you sure you can handle it?"

With a look of determination in my eyes, I nod to her.

"Positive. This is something I need to get done no matter what. Even if I was unprepared… I would still have to go."

She nods to me with a look of understanding.

"Just be careful, okay? You mean a lot to the Prince, whether he would admit it or not, and he'd hate it if something were to happen to you."

I give her a smile and face the opening portal.

"I know… Thanks, Sophie. I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Alright. Be safe, Etna."

I walk through the portal and find myself in an area where ground reaches towards the sky, a place where other planets falls down out of their orbit and end up here, and the blackish blue starry night covers everything like a dark blanket. I squint until my eyes adjust to the bright purple geysers of air pressure that randomly burst through the soil.

"The Stellar Graveyard… I'm finally here. It looks so dangerous and, yet-"

"So beautiful, right?"

I snap around to find Sid standing on top of a pillar of earth, smug as ever. From what I can see, his arm had been healed up as well.

"It's been a while, Etna. How's the royal life treating you? Not too badly I hope… Heh, heh. You know, the stars in the night sky really bring out your eyes .You still look as cute as ever."

"Well if it isn't the sewer rat known as Sid. You still look as revolting as ever."

He throws his head back and laughs. Then tilting his head down, he looks at me through the black strands of his hair.

"Good to see that your sense of humor hasn't faded. I trust you kept to your end of the bargain?"

"As I'm sure you can, _Sid_…"

I spit his name out as if it were venom in my mouth.

"I've kept to my word. There's no one else here. Now where's Aramis?"

He grins wickedly, flashing his teeth at me. Then turning around he points to an unconscious red headed boy resting on a pillar of earth behind him.

"He was a little tired… After all, being forced to work 3 days in a row will tend to take a lot out of a kid like him. Especially under threat of torture."

I clench my fist and narrow my eyes.

"How dare you put him under those conditions! What the hell was so special that you made Aramis work on for so long?"

It's not as if I were concerned about Aramis's lack of sleep. Demons can go days without sleep and take days to sleep as well. No… what I was pissed off about is that they were forcing him to work as if he were a slave or something.

Despite my anger, Sid merely chuckles.

"Well, you see my dear Etna… We discovered that your brother had an interesting hobby. And Maderas decided it would be best if we exploited it as much as we could."

I growled, knowing full well what interests my little brother had.

Ever since he was 200 years old, he loved to take apart dead bodies, rearrange it, and animate them. He first started with a dead puppy we once found in the street and worked his way up to human bodies. I guess you could call him a necromancer in the strictest sense. He creates zombies… and if Maderas forced him to make zombies for 3 days and nights straight…

I unconsciously take a step back, not liking where this was going.

Sid smirks and jumps down from the pillar he was on, landing a few feet in front of me.

"Seems like you get the idea of where I'm going with this. That's right… 3 days worth of undead servants under our control. Our plan isn't just to take you down… we plan on taking out the entire castle, including your little boyfriend and his family as well."

As if on cue, I see hands with rotted flesh break through the ground and start to pull out their undead bodies.

"C'mon, Etna. It is the Stellar _Graveyard_ after all. What were you expecting?"

I silently curse myself and countless zombies rise from the ground, knowing I would probably have to fight all of them.

Damn it… I'm not good at fighting off armies of demons, like the Prince… Hell, I haven't been in that many fights as well. From the looks of things, I may actually lose…

"So how do you like it, Etna? What do you think of our undead army? Did you think that you'd get your happy ending?"

He gestures to the zombies now fully emerged from the ground, waiting for the command to attack.

"Though I did manage keep my word! Not a single living being besides us three! It's time you learned what real life is about! You can't change your fate or the fate of your brother! Face it Etna, this is the end!"

Giving the command, he points forward commanding the zombies to march.

Shit… This doesn't look good. But I can't give up now! I have to live on… for myself, for my brother, and for Laharl… I won't give up!

With those thoughts, I rush into battle, hoping that everything would manage to work out in the end.

A/N: It's up! Faith and begora! It's finally up! I'm really sorry about the delay. By this point, I realize that I have a bad habit of putting off finishing the chapters I start (though I have a feeling you guys already knew). As of such, I have a proposal to hopefully make up for all of this! For every week I don't update, I'll add another 10 pages to the chapter! Crazy, huh? Well, maybe! But I do want to be able to keep my word on this! After all there's only about 5 more chapters to go!

Just so you know, I also plan on making Chapter 11 before New Year's Day! However, I also plan on making a Christmas special one-shot as well. If anyone has any requests or suggestions, I'll gladly listen! It may or may not tie into this story, so feel free to put anything out there. –grins– In any case, let me know what you thought about the chapter! Too long? Too short? Tell me and I'll fix it!

Also I'm thinking of revamping the previous chapters. To those who don't know what that means, I'm going to rewrite the chapter fixing things like plot holes, or making them longer, or what have you.

Stay tuned for the next chapter of Forgotten Memories, Chapter 11: No Remedy for the Past! Look forward to it!

**Response to the Reviews**

Goldamon X: I was kind of wondering if the story was too getting too long or dull. Whether it did or didn't though, it's good to know that you liked the restaurant scene. I like where you're going with that idea. –rub chin– Yes, I like that very much. Heh, heh! We'll see how things turn out. See you in a bit! Also, in case you noticed, I decided to change the ending of this chapter a bit. It'll start off from where it left off next chapter.

Xeno: Whoa now! Monkeys? That's crazy talk! CRAZY! –points accusingly– Anyways! To update at this very minutes seems a bit… well crazy. –blinks– Unless you're okay with maybe a five page chapter. Heh, heh. I'll get working on the next chapter tonight though. If I'm lucky, it'll be done somewhere between the end of this week and next. Earlier than what I stated, but such enthusiasm must be met with unhealthy updating tendencies! –Laharl style– Ahahahahahaha! Seriously though, I'll do my best to update quicker. Just remember sooner I update, sooner this story is over… then again the sooner I can start the second half of this story. Heh, heh.

Lacto3.1415: Lol. I shall always envy the ability to put in asterisks (aka star things) to indicate action. Unfortunately they seem to get automatically removed when uploading a document. (You can't even do anime faces in the chapters! The horror!) Thankfully the same doesn't apply for reviews. Heh, heh. So… Flonne, eh? –eyes glint mischievously– Yes, I think I can arrange a cameo of sort… Heh, heh, heh! It'll all work out in the end! Though I by far, had no intention to add her from the beginning. However, now that it's this far in the story, I'm not worried about the plot deviating from the original intent. So yes, I think there _shall_ be a Flonne! –grins–


	11. No Remedy for the Past

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Title: Forgotten Memories

Author: RogueShadowX

Genre: PG-13

Rating: Drama/Humor

* * *

Chapter 11: No Remedy for the Past

* * *

**Laharl**

Resting in my coffin gives me time to think. Time to reflect over the past, present, and future. Granted, I have never once done any one of those things before, now might be as good a time as any.

I slowly blink and let my eyes adjust to the darkness. Running my hand through my hair, I think back on what happened only a few minutes ago.

To think that one day I, Prince Laharl, would actually kiss someone. And further more… _enjoy _it. Something must be wrong with me. Probably some sort of terminal illness…

Letting out a sigh, I drop my hand and stare at the lid of my coffin.

_Is_ there something wrong with it? I've been against the idea of falling in love with someone for so long now. Yet… look at me. I'm awake at night thinking about a demon vassal girl, who I met barely over two weeks ago. Why!

I slam my fist on the cover of my coffin, knocking it over and allowing the light to seep into my resting place. Snarling at the invading light, I sit up and take a deep breath.

What the hell is it about her that's affecting me like this? I know I was just joking before… but did I actually mean it? DO I love her? Damn it all! How the hell should I know? I might actually do.

The glow of lava pits below flicker off the stone walls, dancing back and forth. Sighing to myself, I sit up and stare forward.

I need to get out of here. I need… some fresh air.

My footsteps sound throughout the hallways as I take calming breaths to myself.

In the past, I've always been sure of myself. Of my situation, my position, and most importantly of who I am. Now nothing's clear to me. It's like I've been cast into a fogged forest that I can't find my way out of. It's not like I'm regretting it or anything, but damn this is annoying!

After a few minutes of walking I find myself in the middle of the commerce room. Looking around, I see that most of the shops have been closed at this point. Not like it matters though, they always wake up early to open up to start business again. I've seen them do so on the few sleepless nights I've had. Nights such as these, when my mind is racked with thought and I can't seem to rest no matter what I do.

"Man… there's got to be something for me to do."

Checking up on Etna was actually one of the thoughts that came across my mind. But that situation would be too awkward for my liking. If she would ask me why I'm there, then what would I say? That I was bored? Worried? Curious? No matter how you look at it, I would just seem clingy. No… I'll just wait to see her in the morning, even if I don't manage to get any sleep tonight.

Looking up from the stone floor, I see a familiar blue swirl meet my gaze only to watch it fade away.

Ah yes… the Dimensional Gatekeeper. Luckily for her, she only has to work at night when the castle's gates have been closed. That must be quite an easy job. Or at least compared to being a future Overlord.

Blinking, I peer closer to see that she wasn't actually paying attention to her surroundings at all. Rather than focusing on what was in front of her, she seemed to have this pondering look on her face.

I shrug and head towards the disappearing vortex, curious to see what's up.

"Oy, Sophia! What are you doing so spaced out?"

My voice snaps her out of her thoughts, as her eyes focus on me.

"Ah, Prince! Sorry… I just had something on my mind."

I roll my eyes at her blatantly obvious comment.

"Any idiot can see _that_! I'm asking what the hell's on your mind?"

She gives a smile to me, unaffected by my harsh tone.

It seems that more and more vassals these days are getting used to my attitude towards all them. That's not good. I should be inspiring terror and respect in the hearts of my loyal servants. Not amusement.

"I was actually wondering about a certain vassal of yours. She told me she had some business to take care of in the Stellar Graveyard and went off by herself. I can't help but wonder what she would be doing there at this time of night."

After hearing her say that, I widen my eyes and am overcome by a feeling of restlessness.

There's only one vassal I've ever had, there's no question about that. But why the hell would Etna want to go there? And more over, why would she keep this information from me? Something doesn't feel right about this.

I narrow my eyes and glare at the wall in front of me.

"Oy, Sophia! I want you to reopen the portal to the Graveyard right now."

She looks at me with a startled expression, shaken out of her normally calm and collected appearance.

"Prince, is something the matter?"

"I... I don't know. But I think there is. In fact, I'm sure there is. Leaving the castle in the middle of the night, without saying a word… It's very unlike her."

Sophia taps her chin, switching to a more thoughtful look.

"Now that you mention it, she did seem in a hurry. Might this be… something I should inform the king about this?"

Feeling even more restless, I draw my sword and aim it at the wall.

"I don't care what you tell that old man, all I want is a portal to the Stellar Graveyard opened right here and now before I have bust a hole through these walls!"

Those words were more than enough to get the message through to Sophia and got her working on the spell necessary to open a portal to the Stellar Graveyard.

Tightening my grip around my sword, I glare at the wall as the portal slowly begins to form and swirl.

Damn it… This better just be my imagination acting up. Who knows, maybe she's meeting some sort of secret lover instead.

I sweatdrop at the thought and shake my slowly head with my hand over my face.

Then again, I think I'm better off hoping that there actually _is_ something wrong and that I'll make it in time. The idea of her having somebody else doesn't sit well with me at all.

**

* * *

Etna**

Phew, Sophia sure saved my ass on that one. If it weren't for her, I'd have to _walk _all the way here. Hah! No thanks…

Twirling Longinus in my hands, I briefly wonder how the Prince is doing.

I guess he must be asleep by now… Maybe he's dreaming of me? Who knows what sort of naughty things he must be doing to me inside that little dream world of his. Heh, heh!

Walking along I notice bursts of steam geysers erupting through the cracks of the ground. Instead of avoiding them though, I just walk right through it.

After all, what's high pressured steam to the strength of a demon? Hah!

But man is this place boooring! Where the hell is Sid anyway!? Wasn't he supposed to meet me here? I swear… I'm going to kick his ass _twice_ as bad for making me wait.

"Well if it isn't my favorite call girl! You miss me?"

Speaking of the little shit…

I turn my head upward to meet Sid's smirking eyes with a smirk of my own. Of course, this isn't the I'm-glad-to-see-you're-still-alive kind of smirk. This was more around the lines of a I-can't-believe-that-you-need-your-ass-kicked-again kind of smirk with a little you-are-so-getting-this-spear-shoved-up-your-ass-for-involving-my-brother thrown in there.

"Well Sid, I must admit that you're looking better than the last time I saw you. After all, back then you were so charred that you looked like a roasted piece of meat all ready for the Doomsgiving holiday. Only thing that would be missing is the spicing, but then again you've always been rather bland haven't you?"

This time it was Sid's turn to glare, as he jumped down from the pillar he was standing on and landing right in front of me.

"If it weren't for that boyfriend of yours, you'd already be dead or worse. Consider yourself lucky that I'm the one who found you instead of Maderas. He would've done even worse both to you and Aramis. But I guess it doesn't matter since you're about to die soon enough anyway."

I toss my head up in defiance of his tough act.

"Done worse? You make it sound as if you actually had the balls to do something to Aramis in the first place."

Receiving that smirking look from that bastard told me all I needed to know.

Clenching my fist and narrowing my eyes, I point Longinus threateningly at Sid.

"Alright you piece of trash, just what the hell did you do to Arimas!"

He shrugged and smirked at me with his arms across his chest.

"Oh you know… a little bit of this, a little bit of that, and of course we _definitely_ did some of that."

I blink once… then twice… and then my face cringes at the implications of his words.

"What the hell? I had no idea your taste for boys ran that young, Sid. You should really see someone about that. It's definitely not natural. Granted, I always suspected that you preferred the hot dog to the bun, I just didn't expect that you needed to divide your age by four to get the image of just what type of boy you really liked."

As his face flushes red with anger and embarrassment from the implications I threw his way, he clenches his fist and takes a couple of steps forward ready to go on a rant.

"That's not what I was talking about, you idiot! I meant we started using him for a little project of ours, or should I say a project of Maderas. He has a really handy talent that brother of yours. If it weren't for our promise of letting you live a peaceful life in the castle, he wouldn't have lifted a finger to help us. Family love really _is _something isn't it?"

He begins walking around me in a circle, eyeing me as a cat would a mouse. Maybe cat isn't the right word though. He's more of a snake than anything else. With those little beady eyes of his and the way he always seems to slither up behind you like an unwanted pest.

"I bet you're just dying to know what he helped us with, aren't you?"

Not to mention how he's like a broken record saying the same thing over and over again. Yeah, yeah we get it. You think you're so great hiding behind Maderas's leg like a scarred little dog.

"Well, how about it? Maybe if you beg me I might consider telling you."

I swear he just doesn't know when to shut up. If this keeps up, I may just kill him out of irritation without knowing about the location of Aramis.

"Damn it! Say something already!"

"Huh? Did you say something?"

Sid sneers and stops walking right in front of me.

"You know, I think the time for talk is over anyway! Too bad, Etna! We could've had something! But now it's time for you to die!"

"Uh-huh… that's nice. So before I kick your ass once again, tell where you're hiding Aramis. Don't tell me you were too cowardly to even hold up to _that _end of the deal."

Growling, he drew out a sword and pointed the tip at me.

"Hah! I may be a maniacal, loathing, ruthless demon, but I'm still a man. I brought your _precious _little brother along with a couple of cronies, just as an insurance policy."

I cross my arms over my chest in irritation. Even though I expected him to do this, it still annoys me to no end that he'd bring in reinforcements.

He must be one of the biggest cowards in the history of the Netherworld to need "an insurance policy" for a single little girl. But I guess he knows better than anyone that I'm not the same little girl he once knew.

"Heh, I should've known you'd be too scared to hold up your end of the deal. So out with it! Where is he?"

He points up to the tip of column with a rope tied around it, as I follow the rope down to see it wrapped around the feet of a figure with familiar red hair.

"Aramis!"

Groaning, he slowly opens his red eyes and looks around in confusion. Finally his eyes land on me and widen in recognition.

"Huh? Nee-chan? Why are you upside down?"

I lightly slap my forehead at his silly question.

"Baka, you're the one who's upside down. Or has all that blood that rushed to your head dumbed you down a notch?"

Despite my words, a small smile formed on my face, glad to see he was in one piece.

"How're you feeling, bro?"

"Huh? How am I feeling? That's a good question. Well I could be better. After all, I _am_ being tied upside down in some forsaken cosmic wasteland with a spaceships debris scattered about. What am I doing here again?"

"Uh, yeah… Well there's a good reason for that, little bro. Our good friend Sid, I'm sure you remember that piece of trash hardly worth talking about or giving a second glance, has, in a cowardly decision, decided to use you as a hostage in our battle of grudges."

Despite his position, he cracks a small smile and laughs a little.

"Ah, Nee-chan, you're always getting me involved with your disputes aren't you?"

Slinging Longinus over my shoulder, I turn away from Aramis and stare at Sid.

"Don't worry about those small details, little bro. After all, I'm going to be the one who's busting you out."

I begin walking towards the arrogant prick that has made my life a living hell since I joined Maderas's ranks.

"And not just from here. We're getting out of that slimy wretch Maderas's grasp once and for all! That's a promise!"

Sid smirks and crosses his arms over his chest.

"Hah! If you think it's going to be that easy, you've got another thing coming! You'll find out I actually _did _keep my word! I said you, Aramis, and myself would be the only living thing out here, but I never said anything about the living dead! I present to you, my undead army of zombie kings!"

"Anyway hang tight, Aramis! I'm going to cut you down!"

"Hey pay attention, damn it! I'm trying to tell you-"

I blink out of confusion and irritation.

"What the? You're still here, Sid? I thought that you would've gone running away to Maderas, trembling in fear behind his cape…"

Hearing those words coming from my smirking mouth, he clenched his fists and pointed at me furiously, as though the gesture would strike me dead.

"The hell I'd run away! I'm going to make you pay for making a fool of me!"

I give a small snort and laugh at the looks of him shaking in anger.

"Haha, I don't even need to do anything. You're dumb enough to make an idiot out of yourself, you shota-con!"

"Damn it! I am seriously going to murder you!"

I roll my eyes, not really concerned with Sid at the moment.

In all honesty, he's more of a lackey than anything else. The real threat I should concern myself with at the moment is Maderas. I don't know whether or not Sid spilled the beans to that vampiric bastard or not, but I should definitely keep my eyes peeled just in case.

Flapping my wings, I rise up to the column that Aramis is tied to and use Longinus to sever the rope. As soon as I do so, Aramis falls to the ground with a big thump. He soon gets up and brushes himself off.

"Ouch… Nee-chan, couldn't you have been a little more careful?"

I smirk and land beside Aramis with the legendary spear slung over my shoulder.

"C'mon Aramis. You're a demon. You should be able to handle a measly 25 foot plummet head first like it was nothing."

Not saying anything, he instead chooses to stare at me with a look that was trying to determine if I was serious or not.

"Ugh, fine, I'm sorry! How's that?"

Aramis cracks a small grin and rubs the back of his head.

"Better…"

Walking over to him, I ruffle his hair affectionately and flash a grin of my own.

"Good because I'm not going to apologize again."

Sid, having lost his temper some time ago for being ignored time and time again, snaps his fingers with a furious look in his eyes.

"Come out my zombie army!"

As if on cue, the ground begins to shake as corpses start breaking through the cracks in the ground with geysers bursting around them.

I smirk and cover my mouth laughing.

"Haha! What the- I can't believe you just used snapping your fingers as a signal. What kind of idiot would use such an outdated and ridiculous method! Hahaha!!"

Wiping away a tear forming in my eye, I look at the number of zombies that had been summoned.

"Well this is certainly quite an army you've accumulated… albeit a weak looking one. Guess it's time to go to work."

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Aramis grab some cover behind the rocks. Getting into to position for fighting, I couldn't help but chuckle to myself.

"He has no idea what he's getting himself into."

**

* * *

Laharl**

So this is the Stellar Graveyard, eh? What the hell is Etna doing here to begin with?

Walking around this pathetic pit, I'm reminded of how stupid humans can really be. Here under the watchful gaze of the cosmos, many humans have sacrificed their already amazingly short lives trying to reach the Netherworld.

"I doubt they'll ever succeed… But then again they can be quite stubborn about getting their way."

Pesky humans… If they're still trying to breach our border by the time I become Overlord, then I'll just put a stop to them once and for all. Wonder why father doesn't just end them… Oh yeah, mother's a human too. I forget that sometimes…

"Well… guess I should start searching for Etna. I still want to know what her reason was for coming here was. If it was something so secret she couldn't tell me, then I should know all the more! After all she's my vassal, I'm entitled to know these kind of things… but then again, she's not just that is she?"

I decide to stop in my tracks for just a little while, feeling a need to think upon that more.

"No… she's definitely not just a vassal, putting aside that vassals actually pay attention to the orders you give them. She's something more than a servant. Maybe even something more than a friend… Argh! The hell with this! I'll think about it later before I drive myself insane standing here talking to myself!"

Deciding to continue walking, I begin once again moving my feet instead of dwelling on my thoughts. However, I'm not so lucky enough as to leave them behind, as I begin thinking about her once again.

"However, I did find it odd that when I found her she was covered in bruises. I'm guessing that she was dealing with both physical and mental abuse. I wonder what it was that made me accept her as a vassal to begin with."

Thinking back on it now, looking at her in that state gave me a strange feeling. One that was hard to identify, and even harder to explain. It was almost as vivid as rage when I saw her covered in bruises, as empathetic as sympathy when I saw her need to become stronger, and as strong as joy when I saw her expression of happiness when I said I would give her the chance she needed.

"What the hell is this feeling called? I wonder... if it could actually be… love…"

The sounds of battle snap me out of my thoughts and realizing where I am once again, I rush toward the top of the hill to view over the presiding battle.

"Hah! Take this!"

As I run upward, I see six zombies rise upward in the air surrounded by a cyclone only to crash back down to the ground when the wind disappears.

"Heh, I'd know that arrogant voice anywhere!"

Finally reaching the top of the hill, I look over to see an army of zombies surrounding a single red headed girl with an outfit that would rival a succubus. There's no doubt about it… that's her.

"Oy! Etna!"

She snaps her head towards my direction with her eyes open in shock, after impaling a zombie through its head.

"Prince! What are you doing here?"

I cross my arms and smirk down at her, secretly relieved that she was all right.

"Heh… you fool. Did you really think that I wouldn't come to help you?"

She quickly regains her composure and returns a smirk of her own.

"Oh no, I'm sure you would've come running if I called you. After all you _are_ desperately in love with me right?"

I roll my eyes to her arrogant statement, sarcastic or not. Like hell I was going to give her a straight answer, especially in this kind of situation.

"Desperately in love with you? Yeah right. You should try to separate your dreams from reality."

"Tch…"

Eh? What was that 'tch' about?

Her eyes widen a bit, slashing another zombie horizontally, before turning back to me.

"Hey… how did you know I was even here?"

Figuring I might as well give her a hand, I jump down the cliff, smashing into the ground. The force from my landing cracks the ground forms small chasms, which sends some zombies plummeting to their doom.

"Like I said before, it's my duty as an Overlord to know everything that goes on. And that goes double when it involves my only vassal."

Dashing forward, I slice three zombies vertically, right down the middle before flipping backwards and landing to where I was.

"Besides, who else is going to save your scrawny arse when you're in trouble?"

I sigh and let my sword drop down a little bit.

"I've known about it ever since the time in the dungeon you know… that you were sent here to infiltrate the castle…"

_Flashback_

_Damn it! That last attack really took a lot out of me._

_With all my energy drained from my Overlord's Wrath, I fall to the floor in half state of consciousness._

_Heh, I must look like a fool right now… I can't even open my eyes right now, let alone stand up properly. _

"_Prince? Prince! Are you okay?"_

_Etna? _

_She sounds pretty worried. Ah, damn it, what am I doing making her worry about me like this?_

_I feel two cool fingers touch my neck for a few seconds before they are removed._

"_Thank god. You're only asleep. You had me worried there."_

_Oy, oy, don't go killing me off here… Eh? What's that sound?_

_Focusing my ears, I identify the sound of scrapping on the floor and labored breathing._

"_I guess rats really are a pain in the ass to kill after all."_

_Wha? Who's Etna talking to? Don't tell me one them actually survived! Damn it! If I could just open my eyes…_

"_Heh, you're the biggest rat here. After all your purpose is to infiltrate the castle and act as our inside man, so to speak. And what exactly did that brat mean when he called you an innocent? Please, you're anything but one!"_

"_Shut up!!"_

_What the hell is this punk talking about? Whatever it is, it's already getting on my nerves._

_I struggle to open my eyes and make out a blurry figure talking to Etna. _

"_You mean he doesn't know?"_

_He laughs lightly to himself before going into a coughing fit._

"_Poor Etna. Looks like you weren't being truthful with the little Prince. He doesn't know that you're nothing more than a spy and a thief, hired by Maderas."_

_Bastard, don't think that you can say whatever you want just because you feel like it. Why would Etna-_

"_You bastards!! You're the ones who blackmailed me into it!"_

_Upon hearing those words, I feel my blood run cold for a moment before returning to normal._

_So that's how it was, huh? All this time… she was serving as a spy, but… _

_I let out a small sigh, as it becomes harder to keep my eyes open._

_This girl is the one that's going to become my vassal… If she's in trouble or being blackmailed then I'll guess just have to help her. That's all there is to it._

_With that thought, I drift out of consciousness and into a dark sleep._

_End Flashback_

"So that's how it is. I've known about your secret ever since that time."

Slicing another zombie down, I turn to her with a solemn look on my face.

"Why didn't you tell me, Etna? Did you think I would've turned my back on you? That I wouldn't have stood a chance against them? Or that I didn't love you enough?"

**

* * *

Etna**

My eyes widen in surprise. I was so confident that he didn't have the slightest clue what was going on.

Then again, he seems to be surprising me a lot lately… Hm, what could this mean? Even after knowing that, he still came here to rescue me? And even before that, he fought the senate for me despite the truth? Wait a minute…

"Uh, Prince, what was that you just said?"

He raises an eyebrow at me, before avoiding an attack and beheading a zombie.

"The fact that I've known about your secret all this time?"

I shake my head and notice another one charging at me. I flip and impale its head, then turn to Prince slightly irritated.

"No! Not that one, the other one!"

He gives me a strange look and smacks an enemy across the graveyard with the flat side of his sword.

"That you didn't think I was strong enough?"

I jam my spear into the last zombie's gut and kick it aside. Crossing my arms, I glare at the blue haired demon.

"Damn it! Stop messing around! I'm talking about… you know… "

At this point the embarrassment gets strong enough to lower my voice to a near whisper.

"Your love not being enough thing…"

His crimson eyes widen a bit before going back to normal. He crosses his arms and turns his head in the opposite direction to hide his reddening cheeks.

"Oh, that thing…"

"Yeah, that thing."

He gives a small cough and hesitantly looks back at me.

"What about it?"

"Did you mean it?"

I stare at him expectantly to let him know that I was serious about this.

To be honest, I was a little nervous myself. Learning about how one of the most important people in your life feels about you would make anyone a little antsy right?

"Well… it's not like I'm doing risk my life on multiple occasions just for fun or anything, you know."

Not saying a word, I continue to listen on giving him my full attention.

He scratches his cheek and hesitantly continues.

"In all honesty, I'm not too sure what love is myself. It's supposed to be this warm feeling deep down inside. Things are suppose to happen like your heart would skip a beat every time your eyes meet. Or something like feeling lonely when they're not around, but you get happy when you see them. It sounds really strange but-"

"Prince. You're rambling."

He gives a cough out of embarrassment. His focus then lands on the ground before slightly lifting his eyes to meet mine with a hint of red on his cheek.

"Truth be told, Etna…"

"Yeah?"

"When we first met, I saw a small demon girl who needed protection and I was the one able to offer it. I thought of it as a chance to save someone However it was only after we started spending time together that I began to think of you as a-"

Before he can finish that thought, another voice calls out to us from the distance.

"Onee-chan!"

"Yes, an Onee-chan."

We exchange confused blinks and both pause reflecting on what was just said.

"Uh, Prince… I'm flattered and all, but that's not really what I was hoping to hear you know. Granted there are some people who have that kind of taste, I'm just not one of those people."

My teasing gets just the flustered reaction I was hoping for out of the Prince.

"Wha? No! That wasn't me. Those words came from someone else!"

"Someone else?"

We both turn to the direction where the voice came from and squint our eyes. After a little focusing, I find a small blur of red coming towards us full speed with its arms open.

"Aramis?"

**

* * *

Laharl**

Who the hell is this? Some brat? Well I guess he's an acquaintance of Etna since she knows his name.

"Onee-chan!"

I let out a small sigh and clench my fists. As he's about to pass by me, I raise my fist and smack his head with full force, sending him to the ground. Well maybe not full force, but hard enough to relieve some tension.

Heh, well that was somewhat satisfying, but the fact I was interrupted and said something embarrassing like that still doesn't make it good enough.

"Oy, brat. I was in the middle of saying something really important here. Just who the hell are you?"

The red headed boy gets up and looks at me with defiance in his eyes, not intimidated at all, though still holding his head in pain.

"You're more of a brat yourself. Shouldn't you introduce yourself first? It's only common sense. And what's with smacking me before you even know who I am? Don't you have any manners? You must have been raised pretty poorly if you can't even-"

I feel my left eye twitch at his constant barrage of demeaning statements and make my way to teach him another lesson.

"Why you-"

Before I can finish though, I am once again rudely interrupted.

"Ahem! Prince!"

I turn around with a small scowl on my face.

"What is it?"

She opens her hand palm up and directs it at the red headed brat.

"This is my younger brother Aramis."

Blinking in a few times, I stare slightly dumbfounded at her before turning my attention to the kid, then back to her again.

"You have a brother?"

She gives a short, simple nod.

I turn to the little brat nursing the growing lump on his head. Then I turn to Etna and start looking her over.

Hm, I guess I can see the similarities in hair, eyes, and possibly even attitude. The chest was obvious as well, but for various reasons I won't be getting into get into that.

Shrugging, I rub my chin and decide to acknowledge him as the brother I had heard about beforehand in the dungeon. I turn to the brat with a growing defiance in his eyes.

"So you're name is Aramis, huh?"

"Yeah what of it?"

"Just what are you doing here in the middle of a battlefield?"

He looks over to his sister before looking back at me, almost as if checking if he could get her permission. However she didn't say anything, so he probably took that as a yes.

"I'm the one who made all these zombies."

"What?"

I take a look around at the hundreds of corpses, once again lifeless on the ground. Despite the fact nothing was moving, it didn't take away from the fact that they littered almost everything within half a mile. They sheer number was remarkable, especially for one demon to create by themselves.

"Heh. This is pretty impressive. How would you like to serve under me, brat? You'll be my second after Etna."

Etna took this opportunity to flash me her trademark grin and I inwardly groaned, knowing that she had something in mind.

"Hmmm… so that's how it is, Prince? You'd like him to serve under you, eh?"

"Shut up! I meant as a vassal!"

Aramis pauses and looks at all of his works now dismantled on the floor.

"Well you've certainly proved yourself capable as a warrior."

Just as a smirk began to grow on my face though, he quickly interrupts me.

"But I can't be certain if you're a good ruler or not. The only way I would know is by sticking around longer."

Looking over the kid, I see a small frown on his face and I instantly got what he was saying. Putting up a small grin, I cross my arms over my chest and give a small chuckle.

"Is that how it is, huh? Guess I have no choice. In that case, from this point on, I declare you, Aramis, a temporary vassal until you see fit to remain as a permanent vassal."

From behind Etna leans her arms on top of my head and gives a smile at her brother.

"Aw, Prince, you're such a smooth talker aren't you? I bet you're just using him to get closer to me, huh?"

I shrug and slip out underneath her, slightly annoyed at the fact that I was shorter.

"Who knows? Maybe I am. Definitely couldn't hurt my chances could it?"

With those words, I began to walk away, satisfied from seeing the look on her face.

"Prince… you're getting awfully bold there aren't you?"

I shrug and continue walking before turning around to face Aramis.

"So what's it going to be? You coming along or you going to play pick up the pieces with these rotting corpses?"

Aramis slowly closed his eyes and opened them. Then taking a look at all the work he'd have to do in order to scavenge up his works of art, he shrugged and faced the blue haired prince.

"I think I'll be coming along after all. Who knows what you'll try on my sister when it's just the two of you alone."

Etna smiles and ruffles her brother's hair much to his displeasure.

"Oh Aramis, you'd be quite the lady killer with that attitude of yours if it wasn't for your interest in modifying dead bodies."

"Well either that or he's just a kid with a big sister complex. Better be careful there, Etna."

Receiving a smirk and glare in return, I smile back before blinking.

"Wait a minute… Doesn't it feel like we're forgetting something?"

I take a pause to briefly analyze what happened so far, as the other two do.

Hm, well there was the matter of rescuing Etna's brother, which has already been taken care of. Sure, he was a potential obstacle of standing in the way with my vassal and relations that might be taken to the next level, but that wasn't it. This was more of an annoying feeling in the back of your mind like when you forget to take out the trash and it ends up rotting and filling your house with a putrid, horrible stink. Oh yeah!

Both Aramis and Etna exclaim at the same time.

"Sid!"

Etna put her hand head as if holding back a migraine that was fast approaching. Aramis looked at her in concern but kept his mouth shut.

"How could we have forgotten about such an annoying little creature like that?"

I give a small sigh and swing the sword over my shoulder.

"Most likely because we got distracted with the fact that I knew were being blackmailed all along and you wanting to know if I had a four letter word to use on you."

Seeing the look on her face, I quickly add in with haste.

"Which you will have to wait for, during a more appropriate time."

Her face went from a child who was about to receive a weapon to butcher and maim, to one who just got told they couldn't reach into the cookie jar. Not a sad one, but more of a I'll-get-my-damn-cookie-if-it-takes-me-all-night.

Wouldn't have it any other way. After all, how many chances do I get to do the teasing?

Aramis, not really interested in the conversation, probably felt it was his duty to bring up the question that we had ignored and needed to know.

"Does anyone even know where he even is at this point?"

The silence that then swept over us was all the answer that was needed as this point. And with that, we quickly split into groups of two with the siblings on one team and me on my own.

"They better hope I don't find him first. After all of the crap he put us through and all of the potential moments he's ruined, I don't know if I can resist the urge to reduce him to charcoal one more."

**

* * *

Etna**

As I'm running along with little brother, I realize that I haven't had the chance to talk with my little bro for quite a while. Seeing as how there wasn't anything pressing right at the very moment, I decide to pry into his life with the privilege of being his older sister.

"So Aramis…"

He tentatively turned his head to me slowly, as if expecting me to spring a trap on him.

Oh, how well he knows me.

"How have you been while I was gone? I mean, aside from being used to make an army of rotting corpses? Did you find a special someone yet? Have you tried? Or maybe you really are pining for your older sis after all?"

I saw a small look of annoyance briefly touch his face before he rolled his eyes at me.

"Onee-san, you seem to closer to committing acts of fornication than I am. If I'm not mistaken you've probably been making your move on the brat of the castle. Are you perhaps interested in the prince's royal family jewels?"

My eyes fly wide in shock from the comeback of my normally quiet and introverted brother.

"Whoa, Aramis. Where'd that come from?"

He shrugs and we both jump over a small crevice, still looking out for a sign of our hated enemy.

"Spending time with a piece of trash like Sid, you start to pick up on certain figures of speech I suppose."

I shake my head and mumble to myself.

"I knew leaving you on your own would end up in disaster. Stupid bastard, Sid. You stole the innocence of my little brother!!"

As I'm laughing to myself, Aramis comes to a halt and turns to his left. Pointing his finger towards a column of pillars sticking out of the white wasteland, we both see the form of a black haired, pale demon.

"Nee-chan! He's over there!"

Instantly putting all other thoughts to a halt, I whip out Longinus and dash towards him. It seemed he was out of breath, so I didn't need to hurry as badly as I felt I needed to.

"I'll go after him. You just find some cover alright?"

Turning my attention to the retreating demon, I yell at him with anger.

"Sid! I've come to finish the duel you proposed to me, you damn coward!!"

I jump into the sky and spread my wings, forming a dark shadow over the area which finally gets his attention. He turns around with a look of surprise etched on his face.

He obviously wasn't expecting to see me so soon.

Time to put things to an end once and for all. This time I'll be on the offensive!

"Drop dead!"

I turn my spear downward and impale towards the ground. He quickly dives away and rolls, just barely keeping his head intact.

"Ho… you're a fast one aren't you? You always were quite the snake."

He pulls out his sword and spins around swinging at me.

Luckily, my battle experience had been improved upon vastly since we last fought. That encounter with the Assembly helped quite a bit. Not to mention, I feel stronger than ever just from holding the Longinus. No wonder the king likes it so much!

I duck the horizontal slash and counter by giving him a strike to the gut with the blunt end of my spear.

"Looks like in the end, you're still only a snake. I'm going to enjoy taking you apart."

He coughs and falls to his knees, clutching his stomach.

"Damn it… you bitch. You already got your brother back but you just can't leave well enough alone, could you?"

I smirk and look down on him with coldness in my eyes. Then pointing my spear at his neck, I begin counting on the fingers of my left hand.

"You take my family hostage, make my life a living hell, tell me to betray the king, and you think you'll get off easy? Oh no. I'm looking this gift horse in the mouth and riding it all the way to the glue factory!"

"When Maderas finds out about what you did-"

Upon hearing the name of the vampire responsible for all of this, my eyes flare up with anger and I turn Longinus around to impale his left hand.

"Agh!!"

"I'll tell you now. Don't expect that bastard to help you out just because you got your ass handed to me. He's nothing more than a lowly outcast hiding in the shadows. Do you honestly expect that he would care if he lost someone as worthless as you?"

To be honest, I'm surprised that I can take this openly against Maderas. It seemed like only a smile while ago that I would bite my tongue and obey what he told me to do. Now that Aramis is back with me, safe and sound, I'm finally free to say what I want and do what I want!

Sid chuckles and grins at me, despite the pain from his impaled hand.

"Don't think that this incident will be the end of it. Even if I end up dead, he's not going to give up until he gets revenge against you and the king."

A shot of steam shoots up from the cracks that we are standing and covers my vision. At this moment, I feel Sid forcibly pull his hand out and jump aside.

"Che… what an annoying bastard. How many times does he plan on escaping?!"

As the steam fades away, I see a fiery pillar shoot up into the sky along with a cry into night sky. I run towards the fading blaze and find Lahral with his food on top of Sid's body charred body.

"I didn't think you were the type to let your prey escape once you got a hold of it. What would you do without me, Etna?"

I swing my spear over my shoulders and let my arms hang off it.

"I would manage somehow I'm sure. After all I did just fine before you got here."

He rolls his eyes and kicks Sid's body next to my feet. I hear a small cough and realize that he wasn't a corpse just yet.

"So what do think we should do with him, Prince? Should we end him now?"

Laharl rubs his chin and finally revealing an evil grin.

"No… I think I have a better idea. First we need to head back though."

To be honest I didn't care much for letting him live, but I was semi-interested in what the Prince had planned.

I rarely get to see his sadistic smile. He must have something great in mind.

"Aramis! Let's go! We're heading to the castle!"

Upon hearing my call, Aramis comes out from behind one of the pillars and gives me a questioning look.

"What are we doing over there?"

I shrug in response and follow the Prince, dragging the half dead corpse by his foot.

_Later at the castle…_

"Ah! It's good to be back at my room!"

We had just gotten back to the when the Prince walked off with Sid now conscious and panicking. Seraph knows what kind of stuff he's in for. Personally, I'd rather be there to watch, but I was told to head back and wait for the surprise.

"Wow, Nee-san. So this is what it's like to live in the castle. This is way better than the shack we were living in before!"

Ah right. Aramis has never been inside the castle before. Normally we'd just live wherever we could find for free. Last place we were living before Maderas was an old abandoned shack. Not much by noble or even commoner standards, but it was still better than living on the streets.

"Well yeah. It is the king's castle after all. Even the vassals' quarters are better than the houses in the slums. Shame you couldn't have come here earlier. We had a lot of crazy adventures while you were gone."

He turns and looks at me with some disbelief in his eyes.

"It's kind of hard to travel freely when you're locked in a room being forced to make zombies 24/7."

I give a small shrug in response to his little complaint.

"That's all in the past now, Aramis! You got taken hostage, I rescued you, and Sid is experiencing Seraph knows what right now. So let's put that aside and let me tell you about some of the stuff we got into…"

**

* * *

Laharl**

Finally reaching the end of the corridor, I toss the smoldering body on the floor. He twitches a little bit before going into a coughing fit.

So this is the punk responsible for causing Etna and her brother so much pain and misery, huh? Got to admit, he wasn't as tough as I pegged him out to be. No, wait… that's not right. This guy was just hired help. Who was the brains behind this operation? I remember hearing Etna and this bastard talk about it back then. He said the one responsible for having Etna infiltrate the castle was Maderas.

I knit my brows, trying to remember how that name sounded familiar.

Hmm… if he's someone I know then he was most likely in the castle. Most likely not here anymore… Ah! That's who it was! He was a vassal of my father! He got banished from the castle from stealing father's black pretzels.

Sighing, I kick the ribs of the body trying to crawl away, so he wouldn't get any ideas.

"Well, you sure have crappy luck running into me as you were running away, huh? There are 666 ways we can torture you here in the castle. Which one would you prefer, hmm?"

The bastard I identified as Sid coughed and looked up at me with hatred in his eyes. In response, I give him a smirk and put my foot on his head, forcing him to get a taste of the hallway floors.

"Don't try to act so cocky. You may not be the one directly responsible for putting Etna through all of this, but I'm sure you've done your fair share of deeds."

He grunts and tries to look at me, but I put more pressure on my foot till the tiles start cracking.

"Ahh… Laharl-san. Good evening. I see you are destroying the castle again."

I turn around and find a blue haired demon with a red ribbon in her hair with her stuffed rabbit in one hand. Looking down, I find that she's wearing white pajamas with red ribbons hanging off the neck.

Eh? Wonder if she just woke up… Gah! Her shirt isn't buttoned up all the way!

I shift my gaze away before my eyes begin to wander down to those dangerous looking curves.

"Pleinair? What are you around here so late?"

Her red eyes look to the floor where my foot was on top of Sid's head and then back up to me.

"I had trouble sleeping. Plus Usagi-san wanted to go for a midnight stroll, so I thought it would be fine."

I blink and stare at her in confusion.

"Huh? Your stuffed animal wanted to walk around for a bit?"

She nods without a change in expression, not finding it strange at all.

"That's right. On nights when the moon is out and shining brightly, Usagi-san gets pretty restless. I'm starting to wonder if he might be part werewolf. A were-bunny perhaps?"

Her eyes widen slightly in recognition of what she said and her hand goes to her face, covering a smile.

"Hah? A were-bunny? Hah hah. Such a strange notion."

She starts chuckling softly to herself and I just scratch my head in confusion.

No, no. The strange one is you. Who ever heard of a stuffed doll that wanted to go for a midnight stroll?

Her laughing abruptly stops and she looks at me once more with an expressionless face.

"What might the prince of our castle be doing up so late? The Dark Assembly is closed at this hour."

I give her a smirk and cross my arms over my chest.

"You know me too well, Pleinair. If they aren't hear then just tell them to get their asses over here! I'll be damned if I'll be inconvenienced by those bastards!"

She holds up her stuffed rabbit and points it at me.

"Usagi-san says, 'You're the moron who's doing the inconveniencing! If such a spoiled brat becomes the next king of our castle then we're screwed!' End message."

My right eye twitches and I stomp down harder on Sid, cracking all the tiles, and burying his face completely in the ground.

"Oh ho… You've got some damned nerve there, you stupid rabbit!"

I pull out my sword and point it at the stuffed animal being held in front of me.

"Do you have a death wish or something?!"

Pleinair pulls the rabbit closer to her and lowers her head closer to it. Then she suddenly holds up the rabbit once more.

"He says, 'Such an impatient and short tempered brat. Why don't you go back to your room and sleep like a good boy before the great Usagi-sama teaches you how harsh life really is!' End message."

"What did you say?!"

In anger, I release my demonic aura and smash my foot further down till the body beneath me stops twitching.

"Unless you want to spontaneously combust into flames and ashes, you'll stop your backtalk and call the damn Assembly already!"

Pleinair pauses and brings the rabbit closer to her.

"…I don't think that's a good idea, Usagi-san… That's true but it seems that he's willing to go all out… Yeah, but he's not a real man, he's a demon kid… It's fine isn't it? Children can be spoiled every once in a while… That's the spirit."

After she's done talking to the rabbit, she looks up at me and offers the faintest smile.

"Alright, Laharl-san. We'll be glad to call the Assembly for you this one time."

I don't know if I should be glad I got my way or pissed off about some of the stuff I heard. Guess it doesn't matter that badly. If he wants to argue any other time, I'll gladly be willing to show him whose boss. Wait… did I just waste a few minutes arguing with a stuffed animal?

"Well as long as you understand then…"

She gives a small bow to me, and once again I shift my eyes away from the center of her shirt that was getting dangerous further away from her body. Afterwards, she turns away and heads down to the market section to open up the Assembly.

Agh, someone needs to tell her she needs to button up all the way. Sure as hell won't be me though. Who knows what kind of reaction I'd receive. Then again with Pleinair there's no telling. She's a strange one that girl…

I lean down and pick up the almost dead body of Etna's ex-tormentor, dragging him once more down the corridor to where Pleinair headed.

"Well it's not one of the official 666 torture methods, but after this bill passes I'm certain you'll be wishing you received one of those instead. Ahahahahahaha!!!"

**

* * *

Etna**

"And that's how we took up the entire Assembly single handedly! Sure, we had some minor setbacks and I temporarily lost ownership of my pendant, but then Prince went all heroic and got it back for me. He's turning out to be quite the demon, just like the king."

Just mentioning the king puts a smile on my face. He's the one who gave me hope and strength to survive.

I turn to Aramis and find out he had resorted to playing with some zombie parts he picked up from the Stellar Graveyard.

"Hey! Have you been paying attention at all this entire time?"

He blinks and looks up confusion, before going back to attaching a demon claw to a zombie arm.

"Yeah, I was listening to you Onee-chan. You were talking about heroes and kings or something, right?"

I stop my foot angrily on the stone floor to grab his attention.

"Agh! You weren't listening at all! Jeez! Where's the Prince at? He's been keeping me waiting for quite a while now. If he keeps this up, I might have to kill him after all!"

Before I can start laughing at the thought, I hear a voice down right outside my door.

"Oy, Etna! Talking to yourself is one of the first signs of insanity!"

I turn around and see Laharl leaning against the doorway with a smirk on his face.

"Ah, Prince. I was beginning to wonder if you had somehow managed to die within the past half hour."

He gives a small chuckle and starts walking towards me, holding something behind his back.

"Don't be ridiculous. I'll be alive to rule the Netherworld for thousands of years. If you want to take up the throne, you'd have to go through me to do it."

I roll my eyes at his cockiness and innocently put a finger to my chin.

"Why do that when I could simply marry you, wait till you become king, and then poison you in your sleep? Easy pickings."

"Hah. Only problem with that plan is that you'd have to get married to me."

Flashing him a devilish smile, I walk closer up to him as well.

"Who says that's a problem?"

His smirk slightly falters, clearly not expecting that. He moves his eyes to the side before meeting mine once more.

"Well if that were the case, then I would just deal with it when it happens."

Heh, typical answer from the Prince. Guess he's not ready for that kind of thing just yet. Well not like that matters! It'll be coming whether he's ready or not.

"So, Prince… what's that you got there behind your back? Perhaps some flowers to woo me with?"

I hear Aramis give a small snort, but I promptly ignore it as does Laharl.

"Nope. It's something better than that."

He pulls his arms from behind his back, revealing a Prinny being held by the head. It was trying to fight back, but with its short little penguin arms, it couldn't even reach the top of its head.

"Huh? It's just a Prinny. What's the big deal with that?"

His smirk grows wider and the Prinny starts sweating out of nervousness.

"Etna, I'd like to introduce to you… Sid the Prinny!"

My eyes widen and I stare at the Prince in disbelief. Then I focus my gaze on the Prinny, who was avoiding eye contact with me.

"Oh… well this is quite the gift then."

Even Aramis stopped working on his zombie arm and stood up to take a look at the very uncomfortable Prinny.

My lips curl up to form a devilish smirk on my face.

"So the bastard who's made my life a living hell, making sure that at every turn I would have to deal with some new and unfortunate encounter, has been reduced to a weak, highly explosive Prinny, hmm? I think I can grow to enjoy this."

Laharl tosses Sid to me and I catch him with my two hands, slowly tightening my grip on his soft body.

"This is going to be very, _very_ fun. Every day, you'll regret what you've done to me and my brother until you'll begin to wish that you had never had the misfortune to come across me. No matter how much you beg or cry, I won't forgive you though."

I blink, temporarily snapping out of my moment and turn to Aramis.

"Hey, Aramis. Is there anything you want to say to him before he hits the wall quite literally?"

He walks up to Sid's face and looks him in the eyes as if he were looking upon something an insignificant insect.

"You have no one to blame but yourself. Everything you've done has lead up to this moment. Call it fate or karma, but this is what happens when you trample over those weaker than you. The oppressed will become stronger and undoubtedly seek revenge. I'm going to have fun dissecting your body once my sister is done with you."

Then Aramis gives Sid a sadistic smile that almost sends a shiver down my spine and receives a gulp from the Prinny in my hands.

"Well said, bro. Can't say it was nice knowing you, Sid. Hope you're looking forward to these next hundreds of years because I know I will."

With that, I clench his head tightly in my right hand and throw him as hard as I can against the stone wall. His screams are quickly cut short as he smashes against the stones and explodes into ball of fire and smoke.

"I can't wait to revive him so I can do that again."

As the ashes fall off the walls, I brush off my hands and turn to Laharl who was watching the whole ordeal with a smile on his face.

"Thanks, Laharl. You're the best."

I lean over and give him a small kiss on the cheek, which causes him to blush and take a step back in surprise.

"Don't mention it. It's my job as future Overlord to make sure that my vassals are satisfied."

Seeing his step back, I take one more step forward so we maintain our closeness.

"Is that all it is? Aren't I more to you than just a vassal?"

Being this close to him after a kiss must make him pretty flustered. Hah hah. His face is turning red. He's so cute.

"M-More than a vassal? Yeah… you could say that."

"I mean… you rescued me from my fears, taught me how to grow stronger, defended me when I was in need, fought the Assembly to get back my pendant, and even helped me take down someone who kidnapped my brother to use against me. Why did you do all that when you didn't have to?"

Half of the reason behind my advances was for the sake of teasing him, but I really did want to know the truth of how he felt about me.

His gaze lowers to meet mine and I notice that we were only a few centimeters apart.

"You know why already. Don't make me spell it out for you."

I place my hands on his shoulders and bring my face a little bit more closer to his, staring into this crimson eyes.

"No I don't. I want to hear it from your own mouth."

He grabs my shoulders and stares at me with intensity.

"Damn it. It means I'm in love with you!"

At that moment, I could have sworn my heart stopped for a moment. All my doubts were gone from just those few words. It's like a wave washed over me leaving me with nothing but relief and happiness.

"No!!"

We both blink in surprise as the moment between us gets interrupted by the shout. A pair of arms then wraps around my waist and pulls me away from the Prince.

"Huh? Aramis?"

My little brother shakes his head back and forth on my back, holding me tightly.

"No! I don't want some other guy to take you away! I want to be together with you forever!"

Laharl sweatdrops and holds up his hand, pointing to Aramis in confusion and disbelief.

"What? Seriously? I was right after all? You have a sister complex? What happened to our moment? What the heck?"

I give a small smile and turn around to face Aramis. Putting my hand on his head, I kneel down so I could look him in the eye.

"Silly Aramis. I would never abandon you. You're my precious little brother."

I then turn to Laharl who was still having trouble comprehending what was happening.

"That said. I'm turning you down. Sorry about that. Oh, I guess this makes us even for not being honest when we were at the Stellar Graveyard."

Honestly, I was overjoyed about his confession. This is the first time I've ever been told that I was loved. However, I'm also a demon and if someone insults me then I need to pay them back twice as hard. Haha. Revenge is quite sweet.

In response, Laharl rolls his eyes and starts walking away to the hallway.

"Aaaa… Yeah, yeah. Whatever. I'm over it now. Completely over it. Enjoy your quality time together you two."

"Eh? Wait, what? That quick?!"

I reach out to stop him, but remember that Aramis was still holding me fiercely with no intention of letting me go.

"Wait, Prince. That was just a joke! Hey, hold up!"

By the point I managed to pry Aramis off me, Laharl already disappeared into the castle somewhere and leaving me with no idea where he was.

I clench my fists, shaking with anger. Then looking up, I yell as loudly as I can to the entire castle so that he might hear me.

"Prince, you moron!"

Giving a sigh, I walk back to room and plop on my red velvet bed. I close my eyes and mumble into my pillow.

"Stupid, Laharl. I love you too."

* * *

Chapter 11 End

* * *

A/N: It's been a year and five months but I finally pulled out an update. I would like to offer a sincere and earnest apology to everyone who I kept waiting. In addition, I want to thank those who have kept patience or in some cases lost their patience and sent me death threats, including but not limited to Kelsper, Lacto3.1415, and MistressSunaomi.

In particular, a huge thank you to Etna-of-Darkness who didn't give up on me for the past three months! Thanks! I needed all those kicks in the butt!

I'm also going to be creating a series of short stories between Laharl and Etna, so my skills don't start to rust. Should I include Flonne in the fun too?

I will appreciate and moreover welcome and thoughts about the chapter. It's been so long since I've written so I don't know how it measures up anymore. Think it's going too fast? Too slow? Not enough comedy? Let me know!

Till next time!


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